What makes CIAO oxo-biodegradable?
Ciao uses an additive that provides programmable degradation of plastics.

Why are CIAO bottles more environmentally friendly?
Ciao produces a plastic product with equivalent performance characteristics of traditional plastic, is cost competitive and results in a product that will totally and harmlessly disintegrate in multiple environments, commencing at a predetermined time.

Why choose CIAO? (The 4R Solution: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Reverte™)?
CIAO bottles are manufactured that provide the safest, most cost-effective, environmentally safe way to degrade plastic. By far the largest proportion of single use plastics, such as those used in disposable packaging, end their lives in landfills or as litter. At present, conventional non-degradable plastics can persist unchanged for many years.
The unique programmability of the technology safely biodegrades plastic waste from within a few months to a maximum of 5 years. In landfills they reduce volume, help maximize capacity utilization and aid in landfill compression.

What are the options for dealing with plastic waste?
There are currently 3 options for dealing with plastic waste:
• Do Nothing - Continue using plastics as we do now, filling our landfills and waterways with tons upon tons of plastic waste which persist for hundreds of years.
• Utilize food-based plastics - which are created from crops such as corn and are industrially compostable. These  plastics cannot be co-mingled with recycling stream, are grown using fertilizers and fuel, and need to be used as a food source for our hungry planet  (See Inconvenient Truth)
• Utilize oxo-biodegradable technology - when added to a plastic product at manufacture, allows it to completely and harmlessly break down in a pre-defined programmable manner.

How does the Oxo-biodegradable technology work?
The additive technology introduced in the manufacturing process of a variety of plastic (polyethylene and polypropylene) packaging and applications. The programmable degradation is triggered by UV and thermo-oxidation, meaning once the additive is activated, the presence of oxygen causes the plastic to have a reduction of molecular weight and become very brittle.
These fragments decompose further into simple elements: carbon dioxide, water and biomass. Heat, sunlight and mechanical stress (i.e. movement) accelerate this degradation process.
As the long carbon and hydrogen chains of plastic become shorter and shorter and are now able to incorporate oxygen into their chemical make-up, it is at this point that the plastic turns into organic functional groups (ketones, carboxylic acids, alcohols etc) that attract water. These transformations (to smaller chains in the presence of oxygen and water) create the conditions for the second stage of biodegradation: microbial digestion.
Once the molecular mass of the plastics are reduced to below 40,000 molecular weight - due to oxidative degradation - the material becomes water wettable and can sustain a biofilm on its surface. This biofilm supports numerous microorganisms that feed off the carbon and hydrogen elements of the oxidizing plastic.
If microorganisms are present (as they are in compost or landfill) these small fragments are included in their tropic chain as food. Biomass is the organic waste of microbe cells. This process is similar to the degradation of lignin in wood.

What are the advantages of utilizing our technology over other methods of degrading plastic?
Advantages when compared to alternative methods or products include the following:
• Programmable and controlled degradation
• Avoids the emission of methane
• Can be made from recyclate
• Degrades in any environment
• Requires no fertilizers, pesticides or water
• Won't hurt forestland and reduce biodiversity
• Very low cost
• Degraded plastic can be economically recycled
• Great tensile strength and leak proof
• Can be incinerated with high energy recovery
• Does not use foodstock and has no impact on foodstock prices or availability
• No specialized storage or handling required

Can Ciao bottles  be recycled?
Yes.

Will CIAO products create greenhouse gases such as CO2? Where is CIAO bottled?
Ciao is bottled at springs that are strategically located throughout the United States to keep the carbon footprint to a minimum.

What type of water does CIAO use?
Ciao uses only the finest spring water.  It is our belief that the water needs to be as pure as the bottle.  No additives or chemicals are introduced to our products.

Why is CIAO the greenest bottle on the planet?
CIAO bottles "locally", all manufacturing done at the source. Our plants work with carbon offset programs around the country , use energy efficient equipment, and alternative power (wind, solar) whenever possible. In addition, our bottles are made using rPET. At Ciao we take our planet seriously.