Pet brands are under real pressure to improve their packaging. Here is what the words actually mean before you print any of them.

Compostable is a certification

Certified compostable means tested to a named standard, with defined conditions and a defined timescale. It comes with a certificate, and we supply it with the order.

Unless the certificate specifically says home compostable, it means industrially compostable. If your customers cannot access industrial composting, the bag behaves like any other in landfill.

Biodegradable is not

Biodegradable on its own has no agreed meaning, no timescale and no conditions. Almost everything biodegrades eventually.

We will not print it as a standalone claim, because it is the kind of wording that gets a brand into trouble and it tells a customer nothing.

Recyclable depends on the structure

A conventional laminate is several materials bonded together and is not recyclable through normal streams. Laminated kraft is not recyclable as paper, whatever it looks like.

Mono-material structures are the route to recyclability, and they cost some barrier performance. On a fatty treat that trade-off is bigger than on a dry good.

Choosing honestly

Match the material to how fast your product turns over. High turnover tolerates a lower barrier, so compostable or mono-material is realistic. Slow-moving shelf stock does not.

Then print only the claim your certificate supports. It is a smaller decision than it feels, and getting it wrong is a much bigger problem than the packaging itself.