The complete guide
Biodegradable Mulch Film: The Complete Guide for Farmers
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Biodegradable mulch film gives crops the warm, weed-free, moisture-steady seedbed of plastic mulch — then disappears into the soil after harvest instead of becoming waste you have to pull and haul. Here is how it works, how it compares to conventional plastic, and what it changes for your season.
What is biodegradable mulch film?
Biodegradable mulch film is a thin agricultural film laid over the soil to warm the root zone, conserve moisture, and suppress weeds — exactly like conventional plastic mulch. The difference is what happens at the end of the season: instead of being lifted, rolled, and disposed of, a soil-biodegradable film is broken down in place by the microorganisms already living in your soil.
būmigro film is made from a blend of microbe-edible polymers. Soil microbes treat the film as a food source and metabolize it into water, carbon dioxide, and biomass — the same end products as any natural organic matter breaking down in the field.
The scale of the problem it addresses is large: global demand for greenhouse, mulching, and silage films is projected to rise from 6.1 million tonnes in 2018 to 9.5 million tonnes by 2030, and soils are a primary destination for the plastic that doesn’t get recovered.[1]
100–120 lb
of plastic left per acre, per season, with conventional PE mulch
6.1 → 9.5M t
projected global demand for agricultural films, 2018 to 2030
≥ 90%
of the film's carbon must convert to CO₂ within 2 years in soil under EN 17033 / ISO 23517
How does biodegradable mulch film work?
During the growing season the film behaves like any high-quality mulch. After harvest, degradation begins — driven by soil temperature, moisture, and microbial activity, so the timeline varies by climate and how the film is incorporated.
- 01
Lay and grow
The film warms the bed, holds moisture, and keeps light off weed seeds all season.
- 02
Harvest
The crop comes off. There is no film to lift, roll, or haul off the field.
- 03
Till it in
The film is worked into the soil, where breakdown is designed to begin.
- 04
Microbes finish it
Soil microorganisms digest the film into water, CO₂, and biomass.
- Soil warming & moisture. Covering the bed prevents extreme temperature swings — warmer in cool weather, cooler in intense heat — and locks in soil moisture so plants have a steadier water supply through dry spells.
- Weed suppression. The film blocks sunlight from reaching the soil surface, stopping weed seeds from germinating — without herbicides or hand-weeding.
- Breakdown into biomass. Once the crop is off, microorganisms digest the film into water, CO₂, and organic matter. Nothing has to be pulled, rolled, or trucked away.
For the full season-by-season picture, see how biodegradable mulch film works, from field to biomass.
Biodegradable mulch film vs. conventional plastic
Conventional polyethylene (PE) mulch is effective in-season but carries a hidden bill at the end of it: the labor-intensive job of lifting the film, plus the cost of hauling and landfilling it. PE that is left in the field or incompletely removed also breaks into small fragments that persist in the soil.
PE plastic mulch
- Lift and roll the film off every bed
- Haul it off the farm
- Pay landfill tipping fees
Torn fragments stay behind and accumulate as microplastics
Biodegradable mulch film
- Till the film into the soil
- Soil microbes digest it as a food source
- Field is clear for the next planting
Breaks down into water, CO₂, and biomass — nothing to remove
Where the savings actually are
- Removal labor. Crews that would spend days pulling plastic can be reassigned to more productive work.
- Disposal & hauling. With no plastic to dispose of, landfill tipping fees and off-farm hauling for mulch disappear.
- Faster field turnover. A field that is clear at harvest can be prepped for the next crop sooner.
On a per-acre basis, conventional plastic mulch leaves an estimated 100–120 lb of petroleum-based plastic per acre to remove and send to landfill each season.[1] For the full cost breakdown, see biodegradable mulch film vs. plastic mulch.
Biodegradable vs. “bioplastic”: the microplastics distinction
First, the cost of getting it wrong: in mulched fields, plastic fragments accumulate and persist in the soil — one long-term field study found microplastic abundance rose over more than three decades of plastic-film mulching.[1] Those particles can alter soil structure, water-holding dynamics, and microbial activity.[1]
This is the distinction that matters most, and the one most easily confused. Not every film labeled “bio” disappears cleanly. If a biodegradable plastic isn’t fully degraded in soil, residual fragments and microplastics can be left behind and persist in the environment.[1] That is because many bioplastics — such as PLA — are designed for the hot, controlled conditions of industrial composting, which simply don’t occur in a field.
A genuinely soil-biodegradable film is built for the field instead: soil microorganisms convert it into carbon dioxide, water, and microbial biomass.[1] The recognized product standards for this are EN 17033 (Europe) and its international twin ISO 23517, which require that at least 90% of the film’s carbon converts to CO₂ within two years at ordinary soil temperatures, alongside safety tests for soil organisms.[1],[2] These are not the same as “compostable” standards like EN 13432, which only prove breakdown in industrial composting — not in your soil. būmigro film is formulated to be soil-biodegradable, so it mineralizes in the field rather than fragmenting into microplastics.
What it changes for your farm
- Yield support. A steadier root-zone environment and weed-free beds let crops put energy into growth.
- Lower labor & disposal cost. The end-of-season removal and disposal burden largely goes away.
- Healthier soil over time. No accumulating plastic fragments to degrade soil structure and water retention.
- Herbicide-free weed control. Light-blocking suppression instead of chemistry — see weed control without herbicides.
Frequently asked questions
Is biodegradable mulch film the same as compostable film?
Will it break down before my season is finished?
Does it leave microplastics in the soil?
How much does it cost compared to plastic mulch?
Can you use biodegradable mulch film on a certified organic farm?
References
- 1.USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, Biodegradable Mulch Film Petition (estimated 100–120 lb/acre of petroleum-based mulch waste landfilled per season). Link
- 2.Li, S. et al. (2022). Macro- and microplastic accumulation in soil after 32 years of plastic film mulching. Environmental Pollution, 300, 118945. Link
- 3.de Souza Machado, A.A. et al. (2018). Impacts of Microplastics on the Soil Biophysical Environment. Environmental Science & Technology, 52(17), 9656–9665. Link
- 4.Withana, P.A. et al. (2025). Biodegradable plastics in soils: sources, degradation, and effects. Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts (RSC). Link
- 5.European Bioplastics. New EU standard for biodegradable mulch films (EN 17033): soil-biodegradation at ambient soil temperature, distinct from industrial-composting standards such as EN 13432. Link
- 6.Bandopadhyay, S. et al. (2023). SOIL, 9, 499–516 — soil-biodegradable mulches are converted by soil microbes to CO₂, water, and microbial biomass; EN 17033 requires 90% mineralization of mulch carbon within 2 years. Link
- 7.FAO (2021). Assessment of agricultural plastics and their sustainability: A call for action (global demand for greenhouse, mulching and silage films projected to rise from 6.1 Mt in 2018 to 9.5 Mt by 2030). Link
