Political Ecofriendly products are generally supported by the government of any particular country.

In August 1999, the then US President, Bill Clinton signed an executive order that called for the formulation of a strategy to make bio-based products and bio-energy more competitive in the US. The order envisaged tripling the use of bio-based products, including bio-plastics and bio-energy in the US by 2010. This helped natureworks to establish their market in US. In June 2004, Japan gave approval for the use of PLA in articles that would come in contact with food such as bowls and plates, the market for PLA in Japan, which was even otherwise showing high growth rates, was expected to surge.

Economical The cost of raw material, essentially corn, has remained stable for decades, while oil and natural gas, which is what the majority of existing plastics are made from, has been on increasing trend that has made it difficult for companies. NatureWorks was offering non-GE corn-based PLA, which it sold at higher prices than the usual variety. Other economic factors like inflation would also affect the sales.

Social People are day by day tending towards eco-friendly products being environment conscious. Premium segment is also willing to pay extra for such products. There were concerns from society about NatureWorks using genetically engineered (GE) corn produced by Cargill to manufacture PLA. The introduction of PLA-based plastics brought in its wake another serious issue -- contamination in recycling units. NatureWorks announced a buy-back program for its PLA-based plastics in an effort to tackle the issue of PLA contamination in PET and HDPE recycling programs. Technological In 2001, Cargill Dows corn-to-plastic technology was awarded the Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) Technology-of-the-Year award by the US Department of Energy. The company provided a toll-free phone so that prospective customers could easily establish contact. Cargill Dow continued to develop new applications for NatureWorks PLA. Apart from packaging solutions, the company, together with its partners, developed floor coverings, carpets, apparel, bottles, recording media, etc, using NatureWorks PLA or Ingeo fiber Lacerta Group provided new thermoforming applications for NatureWorks PLA.

Infra-red sorting machines were usually used to sort plastics for recycling

Environmental PLA was claimed to be environment friendly as it was made from renewable sources In January 2003, Cargill Dow launched Ingeo, a fiber made from PLA. Ingeo was presented as the worlds first man-made fiber derived from a 100% annually renewable source. Society was concerned about the environmental fallout of the intensive cropping that Cargill and NatureWorks would have to undertake in order to grow the raw material (corn) for their PLA factories. Such cropping was likely to deplete the soil and degrade cropland, and affect the already strained water resources. Apart from bio-degradability, PLAs environmental benefits include compostability and recyclability. At the end of its useful life, PLA can be disposed of through traditional means such as incineration, landfill, and physical recycling. Legal Several countries had either banned plastic bags or passed laws to restrict their usage. For example, in 2003, authorities in Taiwan had banned the free distribution of plastic bags in department stores, supermarkets, and fast-food outlets, and disposable tableware in restaurants in order to reduce plastic waste a menace that was assuming alarming proportions on the island. Ireland, Australia, South Africa, and England were all enforcing or considering enforcing a ban or some form of restrictions on the use of plastic bags.