The University of Santiago de Chile is developing a degradable film for packaging fruit and vegetables, which comprises a polyolefin-based polymer matrix that incorporates an antimicrobial (biocidal or fungicidal) active ingredient of an essential oil.
Chilean students also created biodegradable plastic based on artichokes, which also serves as fertilizer for the land. The students of the University of Santiago explained that the material they created took between four and five months to degrade and that they are studying using waste from other vegetables to boost production.