An Open Letter to Compostable Dog Poo Bag Companies

(From the Talking Rubbish Podcast Crew)

This letter is for anyone who sells compostable dog poo bags online.

Let’s Talk About Compostable Dog Poo Bags

First off, we genuinely appreciate what you’re trying to do, helping dog owners make more sustainable choices. Compostable dog poo bags have huge potential to reduce plastic waste, and we share that goal.

However, there’s a widespread misunderstanding about what “compostable” means in practice. Many people believe these bags will naturally disappear wherever they’re left, but unfortunately, that isn’t the case.

Currently, there are no industrial composting facilities in the UK that accept dog poo bags. And while some products are home compostable, it’s important to make clear that dog waste must be composted carefully and that the resulting compost shouldn’t be used for growing food.

Who We Are

We’re Talking Rubbish, a weekly podcast all about sustainability and recycling. Our mission is to help consumers and brands navigate the tricky world of waste and avoid unintentional greenwashing. Lately, dog poo bags have become something of an obsession for us, and for good reason.

We’ve seen firsthand how confusing messaging around compostable plastics can lead to littering and misplaced confidence in products’ environmental benefits. When we posted about this topic, our two posts reached 400,000 views, 6,000 likes and 600 comments, many of which highlighted how misunderstood these terms are.

Why We’re Writing

We’re asking retailers to ensure their marketing and labelling follow the Green Claims Code and ASA guidance. The ASA has already ruled (in the Ancol Pet Products Ltd case) that marketing compostable dog poo bags without proper explanation can be misleading.

Our goal here isn’t to criticise, it’s to encourage accurate communication that builds consumer trust and protects your brand from potential complaints.

If you want more detail on why we are making this ask, we put everything in a petition: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/p/poo.

What We’re Asking

We’re inviting you to review your product descriptions and ensure they:

  1. Specify the type of composability - industrial, home, or both.
  2. Avoid the term “biodegradable”, which has no clear scientific or regulatory definition.
  3. Acknowledge that there’s no industrial composting route for dog poo bags in the UK, and that all bags should be disposed of in a dog waste or general litter bin.
  4. Clarify that compostable bags won’t break down faster than regular plastic outside a composting facility and may still create microplastics if littered.
  5. If your bags are home compostable, please:
    • Identify the standard your product meets.
    • State that compost made with dog waste should not be used for food crops.
    • Highlight Toxocariasis risks.
    • Provide guidance on temperature, process, and time required for full composting.

These details should be visible on your product pages, not just in FAQs, but you can phrase them in your own brand voice.

A Thank You

To recognise your efforts, we’re offering an incentive:

  • The first three companies to make these updates will receive a free 30-second ad read on the Talking Rubbish podcast (currently averaging 2,000 downloads per episode in the first week and 12,000 unique listeners, mostly UK-based).
  • We’ll also include these companies in our “Hall of Fame” on our website, showcasing businesses that have taken real action to improve sustainability communication.

If you’ve made the changes, please email us at talkingrubbishpodcast@gmail.com with links to your product pages. We’ll verify them and get in touch about your podcast feature.

We believe good rubbish deserves good communication. Thank you in advance for helping make sustainability make sense.

James and Robbie
The Talking Rubbish Team
(Your friendly neighbourhood Binfluencers)