Wooden Building Blocks vs. BiOBUDDi Plant-Based Blocks

We’ve talked about the benefits and drawbacks of both plastic and wooden toys before on our blog, but today’s topic is a little different, because BiOBUDDi building blocks aren’t your typical plastic toy. They’re made from “Green PE”, which is a sustainable, renewable type of plastic derived from the sugarcane plant. We’ve talked about the way BiOBUDDi is produced in the past, but as a quick refresher, BiOBUDDi products are made from the waste of the sugarcane plant, which is made into ethanol, which is then transformed into “Green PE”.

Unlike traditional oil-based plastic which is made from a finite, non-renewable resource, BiOBUDDi is “bio-based” and comes from a renewable product. This complicates the usual “Plastic vs. Wood” debate, so let’s get into the details on which building blocks are right for you.

Durability

When it comes to durability, there’s no concrete answer. Wooden toys *can* be very durable. However, there is a wide range of quality and not all wooden toys are created equal. The same can be said of plastic toys.

Wooden blocks are more susceptible to the elements, however, and can be easily damaged by water, and may also require more specialized cleaning products than plastic toys.

BiOBUDDi blocks are just as durable as traditional oil-based plastic blocks, and are easily to clean with normal soap and water.

Playability

One advantage BiOBUDDi has over traditional wooden blocks is that, with few exceptions, most wooden blocks are not made in the same complex shapes that are possible with plastic. BiOBUDDi sets, like traditional plastic blocks, are more “construction toys” in the sense that they can interlock and stay connected.

There are small pegs on the tops of the blocks that can fit into holes or slots in the underside of other blocks, which allows for creating more complex structures than most wooden blocks. Wooden blocks typically lack this connectivity, and thus are limited to building more simplistic structures.

Environmental Friendliness

Here’s where it gets a bit trickier. Up until this point, the comparisons we’ve made between BiOBUDDi blocks and wooden blocks are basically the same comparisons you could make between any plastic and wooden building blocks. But generally speaking, on a strictly environmental level, wooden blocks have the advantage over traditional plastic blocks. However, BiOBUDDi blocks are not traditional plastic blocks.

Wood is biodegradable, and it is an organic material. So yes, wooden toys are indeed better for the environment than most plastic alternatives. However, it is important to make sure the wood is sustainably sourced, because if the trees being chopped down for use in the blocks are not being replaced in a sustainable way, they could be causing harm to the environment.

BiOBUDDi building blocks are not biodegradable like wood. They are, however, 100% recyclable. While they are made to be durable and long-lasting, intended to be passed down to future generations, if you absolutely do need to discard them, they can be used to create something new.

BiOBUDDi blocks are also sustainably sourced. The material used to create BiOBUDDi is taken from waste material of sugarcane that is used for food, meaning no new crops are needed for BiOBUDDi to be made. That means no additional forests or natural land needs to be cleared in order to make these plant-based blocks

Additionally, as we’ve mentioned, BiOBUDDi blocks are made from a renewable resource – sugarcane – rather than the non-renewable petroleum that is the base for most plastics.

The Choice is Yours

Ultimately, it’s up to you to weigh the pros and cons as far as what type of building block is best for your family.

However, these blocks do offer an appealing alternative to traditional, non-renewable, oil-based plastic, in that it provides the same playability as traditional plastic building blocks, with the benefit of being made from sustainable materials that are better for the environment.

While there is no doubt of the eco-friendly nature of wooden building blocks, there is a sacrifice to playability that must be considered. BiOBUDDi offers a compromise between plastic and wooden options, with an eco-friendly building block without losing the connectivity of plastic building blocks.

Find out for yourself by checking out our BiOBUDDi catalog today!