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Students’ Knowledge About and Attitudes Towards Bioplastics
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A study of nearly 700 Slovenian teens found that most students don't really understand the difference between "bioplastics," "biodegradable plastics," and regular plastic, even though many assume anything labeled "bio" or "biodegradable" is automatically better for the environment. This matters because as bioplastics become more common in packaging and products, confused consumers (of any age) may make misguided choices, and scientists still aren't sure how these materials actually break down in the environment or whether they truly reduce pollution and plastic exposure risks. The findings suggest better education is needed to help people make informed decisions about sustainable packaging.
Plastic pollution is a growing environmental concern. Bioplastics, in particular, biodegradable plastics, are increasingly promoted as sustainable alternatives to regular plastics yet their impact on the environment is currently still unresolved. Previous studies show that the general public’s understanding of these materials remains limited, particularly among younger populations. This study thus investigated the knowledge, perceptions, attitudes, and behavioral intentions of Slovenian lower and upper secondary school students regarding regular plastics, bioplastics, and biodegradable plastics. A questionnaire was administered to 697 students (12–19 years old) from schools in Ljubljana and Kamnik during the 2023/24 and 2024/25 school years. The survey assessed knowledge of bioplastics and biodegradable plastics, attitudes towards their usefulness, perceptions of their environmental impacts, evaluations of alternative packaging materials, and willingness to pay for more sustainable products as an indicator of behavioral intention. Overall knowledge scores were relatively low, indicating limited understanding of bioplastics and biodegradable plastics among students (average score: 36% of the maximum score on the five-item knowledge scale). Upper secondary students demonstrated significantly greater knowledge than lower secondary students, and female students achieved higher knowledge scores than male students. Students generally perceived bioplastics, biodegradable plastics, and paper as more environmentally beneficial than regular plastics, tin, and glass packaging. Older students and female students also expressed more favorable attitudes towards sustainable materials. Willingness to pay for environmentally friendly products was moderate and positively associated with knowledge. These findings reveal important knowledge gaps and may provide useful information for the development of educational activities addressing plastic materials and their environmental implications, as well as students’ attitudes, perceptions, and behavioral intentions towards sustainable alternatives.
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This review of bioplastic food packaging finds that consumers are broadly supportive of bioplastics but hold unrealistically high expectations—assuming all bioplastics are both renewable and fully biodegradable—while also lacking practical knowledge of how to properly sort and dispose of them, highlighting critical gaps in public education and policy.
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