Compostable Field Testing Program

The Compostable Field Testing Program (CFTP) is an international non-profit research platform that brings field testing to composter across North America and beyond. Operating since 2016, the CFTP was founded by the Compost Research and Education Foundation and BSIbio Packaging Solutions based on research into the mesh bag method dating back to 2012. The CFTP provides a standard test kit and a customizable protocol for the mesh bag method to test how compostable products disintegrate in real-world conditions. Participating facilities share their data with the CFTP. The data is aggregated across all facilities and anonymized so that individual test results are not tied to a specific facility. This collective dataset from all field tests will be made open-source in a public online database once enough facilities have completed testing to maintain the database's anonymity. The CFTP's data will demonstrate correlations between real-world operating conditions and the disintegration of compostable products and packaging. This is critical information to develop tools and best practices to process these feedstocks. Participating in the CFTP is simple; the Program works with operators, researchers, students and industry experts to set composters up with customized field testing for their site. Reach out to hello@compostabletesting.org to find out more.