Rollpak bags trash with corn.

• Position: Made in Indiana

Rollpak Corporation of Goshen has found a way to combat the environmental problems of plastic litter and landfill shortage while providing another market for surplus corn. Its biodegradable trash bag, called Eco-System I, is made from a mixture of cornstarch and polyethylene that decomposes within two to three years.

Introduced this summer, the new product is at present marketed only to institutional and industrial clients, though there is a possibility bags will be manufactured for the consumer market in the future, says Rollpak Vice President Gary Weaver. Depending on size, quantity and cornstarch content, the bags cost 20 percent more than conventional plastic bags.

Cornstarch bags have an "adequate" shelf life when properly stored. They will degrade...