Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., cut the ribbon to open the facility April 19. ReNewable Products Inc., which is licensing EarthShell´s technology, will produce environmentally preferable plates and bowls for retail consumers at the Lebanon, Mo., factory.

EarthShell´s proprietary technology produces compostable food service products primarily from limestone and starch that biodegrade when exposed to moisture in nature and disintegrate in water when crushed or broken.