A compostable bag that clears one market can fail another. The United States, the European Union, and Australia each run their own compostability standards, their own certifying bodies, and their own compliance deadlines. A buyer sourcing for more than one region needs to know which mark actually governs the destination, and what each mark does not cover.
This guide compares the three main market regimes side by side, separates industrial from home composting, and shows where a food-contact management certification like BRCGS fits. It does not rank suppliers. It maps the marks so you can check any bag the same way.
The three regimes at a glance
| Market | Industrial composting | Home composting | Certifying body/mark | What it does not cover |
| United States | ASTM D6400 (BPI certified) | BPI Home Compost (2025, NF T 51-800) | BPI, North America | Home composting unless the Home mark is shown |
| European Union | EN 13432 | EN 17427:2022 (carrier bags only, EN 17428 disintegration) | TÜV Austria / DIN CERTCO (Seedling) | Market access rules (covered by PPWR) |
| Australia | AS 4736:2006 | AS 5810:2010 | ABA, verified by DIN CERTCO | Nothing extra required for the two tiers |
The table is a starting map, not a substitute for the certificate on the specific product. Two facts decide most buying decisions: whether the destination uses industrial or home composting, and whether the bag touches food.
United States: BPI and ASTM D6400
The US market reads compostability through BPI (Biodegradable Products Institute), a North American non-profit that certifies against ASTM standards. The base standard is ASTM D6400 for plastics, with ASTM D6868 covering paper or fibre coated with a compostable plastic.
To earn BPI certification, a product must show:
- disintegration to under 2 mm within 84 days at about 58 °C,
- at least 90% biodegradation (conversion to CO₂) within 180 days,
- no ecotoxicity to plants, and
- heavy metals within defined limits.
Since 1 January 2020, BPI has prohibited intentionally added PFAS, requiring less than 100 ppm total organic fluorine. Several state laws, including California and Washington, reference BPI as the qualifying standard for a “compostable” claim. In 2025, BPI added a Home Compost certification built on the French standard NF T 51-800, so a bag certified for home use now carries a distinct mark. A standard BPI product without that mark is industrial-only. Note the sequencing: BPI requires a product to hold commercial compostability certification before it can apply for the Home Compost mark, so a supplier offering only a home-compost certificate, without the commercial one, is worth questioning. Details on the US test method are in our ASTM D6400 testing explainer.
European Union: EN 13432 sits under PPWR
The technical standard for industrial compostability in the EU is EN 13432, equivalent to ISO 17088. It requires 90% biodegradation within six months, 90% disintegration within 12 weeks, ecotoxicity testing, and heavy-metal limits. The Seedling logo, issued by TÜV Austria or DIN CERTCO, signals conformity.
EN 13432 is the compostability standard. It is not the only rule a bag must satisfy to reach the EU shelf. Regulation (EU) 2025/40, the PPWR, entered into force on 11 February 2025 and is being applied in stages: obligations phase in over several years, and the deadline that matters depends on the packaging type and the requirement. Check the regulation text (or your compliance advisor) for the date that applies to your case. It repeals the old Packaging Directive 94/62/EC and adds market-access obligations on top of the compostability standard:
- PFAS restrictions for food-contact packaging, expressed as a limit on total fluorine (below 50 ppm),
- heavy-metal limits for all packaging (lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium together at or below 100 mg/kg),
- recyclability and producer-responsibility (EPR) duties,
- technical-documentation retention (five years for single-use packaging, ten years for reusable, under the PPWR documentation rules).
Above the 50 ppm total-fluorine threshold, the burden of proof shifts to the manufacturer, who must document that the fluorine comes from non-PFAS sources. A supplier who cannot explain its fluorine sources is a compliance risk, not just a quality one.
A European-level home-composting standard does exist, but its scope is narrow. EN 17427:2022 sets requirements and a test scheme for carrier bags suitable for well-managed home composting, with EN 17428:2023 as the disintegration test method. Independent labels such as DINplus Home Compostable are issued against it. It does not cover all packaging formats the way EN 13432 does, which is why EU home-compostable claims still run largely through national or private schemes (NF T 51-800 among them). PPWR Article 9(6) asks the European standardisation bodies to prepare harmonised standards for home compostability, so the framework is still moving. Confirm which route applies to your format before printing a home-compost claim.
A bag can meet EN 13432 and still need to clear PPWR’s substance and documentation rules before it is lawful to place on the EU market. Read our PPWR guide for the compliance timeline and our EN 13432 explainer for the composting test itself.
Australia: AS 4736 and AS 5810
Australia splits compostability by composting environment through the Australasian Bioplastics Association (ABA), with verification handled by DIN CERTCO.
- AS 4736:2006 covers industrial composting. It requires more than 90% biodegradation within 180 days, more than 90% disintegration to under 2 mm within 12 weeks, plant and earthworm ecotoxicity limits, heavy-metal limits, and more than 50% organic material.
- AS 5810:2010 covers home composting. The pass criteria match AS 4736, but the test window runs 12 months because a backyard pile runs cooler and less consistently than a commercial facility.
Many municipal FOGO (Food Organics Garden Organics) programmes accept AS 4736 liners. Home-compostable AS 5810 products are the only ones suited to a backyard bin. ABA runs a voluntary verification scheme built on independent laboratory testing plus independent technical review, and applicants must declare that no PFAS compounds were intentionally added. Specifying the wrong tier can lead to rejection at the facility gate.
Industrial vs home: one bag rarely covers both
Industrial composting holds sustained heat (around 55 to 60 °C), controlled moisture, and active microbial load. Home composting is cooler, slower, and variable. A material engineered to pass AS 4736 or EN 13432 can fail a 12-month home test, which is why home-compostable grades carry their own certification rather than sharing the industrial mark.
When a buyer asks for “compostable,” the follow-up question is always: compostable where? If the disposal route is a council industrial stream, an industrial mark is enough. If the end user is a household backyard, only a home-compostable certification applies.
Where BRCGS fits: food contact, not compostability
Compostability marks prove a bag breaks down in a defined composting environment. They do not prove the bag is safe for food contact. That is a separate certification line.
ShinHigh holds BRCGS Global Standard for Packaging Materials, Issue 7 (October 2024), Grade B, audited by SGS, with scope covering direct and indirect food contact and no exclusions. Current certificate status is verified in the BRCGS Directory. BRCGS is a factory food-safety management system certification. It is not a compostability certification, and it does not by itself release a material for home or industrial composting. The two certification lines answer different buyer questions: “will it break down as claimed” versus “is the plant safe to make food-contact packaging.”
For a full map of which certificate answers which question, see our compostable bag certification overview.
How to choose the right mark
Match the certification to the destination market and the disposal route, not to a single global label.
- Name the market. US, EU, and Australia each recognise different standards and bodies.
- Name the composting route. Industrial stream or home bin decides industrial-only versus home-compostable certification.
- Check food contact separately. If the bag touches food, confirm a food-contact management certification such as BRCGS alongside the compostability mark.
- Ask for the certificate number, not the logo. A logo on a box is not proof. A current certificate with a verifiable number is.
A bag built for one regime is not automatically valid in another. Verify the mark against the destination before committing to a production run.
Conclusion
Compostable certification is regional. The US runs on BPI and ASTM D6400, the EU on EN 13432 under the PPWR framework, and Australia on AS 4736 (industrial) and AS 5810 (home), all administered through their own bodies. None of these compostability marks cover food-contact safety, which sits with a separate certification such as BRCGS. Check the destination market, the composting route, and the food-contact question as three independent steps.
For certified compostable bags matched to your target market, request the certification pack and a quote through our wholesale page.
FAQ
Do I need a different compostable certification for each country?
Yes, in most cases. The US, EU and Australia each recognise different standards and certifying bodies. A bag certified to one is not automatically accepted under another, so confirm the mark for each destination market.
Is EN 13432 enough to sell compostable bags in the EU?
It proves industrial compostability, but the PPWR adds substance limits (including PFAS and heavy metals) and documentation duties on its own phased timeline. Treat EN 13432 and PPWR as two separate compliance steps, not one.
What is the difference between AS 4736 and AS 5810?
AS 4736:2006 covers industrial composting in Australia. AS 5810:2010 covers home composting and uses a 12-month test window because backyard piles are cooler and less controlled. Only AS 5810 products suit a home bin.
Does BRCGS mean a bag is compostable?
No. BRCGS is a food-contact packaging management certification. It confirms the manufacturing site meets food-safety standards but does not certify compostability. A compostable bag needs both its compostability mark and, for food contact, a separate food-safety certification.
Can a home-compostable bag also be used in industrial composting?
Generally yes. A product certified to a home-compostable standard has already met the tougher, longer test, so it is accepted in industrial streams as well. The reverse is not true: an industrial-only certified bag is not verified for home composting.
