Cactus juice is the new…plastic? Female scientist discovers biodegradable plastic alternative

Plastic is everywhere — the average American consumes 70,000 pieces of plastic per year, according to the American Chemical Society. The reality is that most plastic doesn’t wind up getting recycled. Much of it ends up in landfills, or worse the ocean, National Geographic reports. One researcher from Mexico says she has a green solution — literally. Sandra Pascoe Ortiz, a chemical engineering professor at the University of the Valley of Atemajac in in Zapopan, Mexico, has developed a plastic made from cactus juice. Read More…