It’s no secret that farm animals will eat anything. There are countless stories of goats chewing their way through barbed wire and ranch bottles. However, one of the world’s most methane-producing animals (cows, in case you didn’t know) has also shown promising signs of being able to help the environment.
Recent scientific studies have shown evidence of stomach bacteria in cows being able to break down plastic. This bacteria is not unique to cows, as certain other polyesters that can break down plastics are located in the peels of tomatoes and apples. However, within these fruits the bacteria quantity is small. Although unfounded, scientists suspect that cow’s stomachs will be a treasure trove of this bacteria.
Scientists, upon harnessing the bacteria, send large tubes of the bacterial liquid to recycling plants where the plastic can be broken down. All around the world, plastic is typically burned and melted which releases harmful chemicals into the ozone layer. However, using enzymes to break down plastics has actually been certified as a form of environmentally friendly recycling.
The process of using enzymes to break down plastics is not new by any means. In fact, our own company, GreenLoop, employs the usage of natural enzymes to break down our product. As bioplastics continue to grow rapidly, scientists are exploring a way to artificially create enzymes so that bioplastics can degrade even faster. In 2018, Japanese scientists linked two separate plastic-digesting enzymes and created a “super enzyme” which devoured plastic at a much higher rate. Scientists suspect that the stomachs of cows will contain similar highly powerful enzymes which work together to dissolve plastics.
Now comes the ethical question of how to harness this polyester material. In European countries where animal protection laws are not as strict, cows have been taken to the slaughterhouse to harness this bacteria. However, in the US there are laws that govern against experimenting on animals. What do you think the United States should do to try and utilize this polyester? Is harming an animal worth it if we can rid ourselves of the plastic problem?
