Is Caterpillar Saliva the Solution to the Global Plastic Waste Problem?

As humans improved through technology and innovation, plastic waste continued to increase. Countless products are manufactured today with plastic, such as water bottles, grocery bags, and garbage bags. This is something most of us use weekly, if not daily.  

These are some common types of plastics: 

• Polyethylene terephthalate 

• High-density Polyethylene 

• Low-density polyethylene  

• Polyvinyl Chloride 

• Polypropylene 

• Polystyrene  

A significant way to break down plastic has not been discovered until now. 

Global Plastic Waste 

It would take a long time to talk about the plastic waste produced by each and every country in the world. Therefore, we’ll discuss the countries that are in the top 3 in producing plastic waste.  

Unsurprisingly, China generates the most waste globally. The total plastic waste generated per capita is 18kg per year. The current population of China is 1.43 trillion, which means that China generates 25.24 trillion kilograms of plastic waste throughout its 415 known plastic waste sites. Most of these waste sites are at the coasts, making this dangerous to marine life.  

The United States holds the second rank for the amount of waste generated with 71 plastic waste sites. The total waste produced by the U.S.A. per capita is 52kg per year. At face value, this might seem more than China. However, with a population of 340 billion, this waste production turns into 17.68 trillion kilograms per year. The state with the highest number of plastic waste sites is Florida. 

The country that generates the third highest amount of plastic waste is India with 690 waste sites scattered around the country. The per capita waste production is much lower than the first two countries as it’s 4kg per year. However, when taking into account that the population of India is 1.43 trillion, this brings the plastic waste output to 5.72 trillion kilograms in plastic waste.  

How Caterpillars Break Down Plastic 

European researchers discovered that wax moth caterpillar saliva contains two special enzymes that are able to break down plastic waste. To be specific, these enzymes break down polyethylene, which is the most common type of plastic produced globally.  

With this discovery comes the possibility to reduce plastic waste in the world, improving the environment for humans and animals alike.