According to European Bioplastics, bioplastics are biobased, biodegradable, or both.
The term "biobased" describes the proportion of a material or product that is derived from biomass. When making a biobased claim, the unit (biobased carbon content or biobased mass content) expressed as a percentage and the method of measurement should be clearly stated.
Biodegradability is an inherent property of certain polymers that may be suitable for certain applications, e.g. biowaste bags. Biodegradation is a chemical process in which materials are broken down by microorganisms into water, carbon dioxide, and biomass. If materials biodegrade under the conditions and within the timeframe defined by the European standards for industrial composting EN 13432, they can be certified and labelled as industrially compostable. Biodegradable claims should not be used lightly and should always refer to the conditions in which the items are biodegradable.