Burger boxes as starchy as the bun.

Recently, fast-food restaurants have stopped packaging their burgers in polystyrene boxes and begun wrapping them in more environmentally friendly cardboard and paper. Now, scientists at E. Khashoggi Industries of Santa Barbara, Calif., have come up with another alternative. Drawing on their experience with cement composite materials, the researchers have developed biodegradable foam packaging out of starch, chalk, and wood fiber. Coated with wax, these containers meet industry standards for strength and durability, says Amitabha Kumar, a Khashoggi research scientist. Because the foam biodegrades rapidly, he adds, its breakdown products should consume less landfill space than either polystyrene foam or cardboard.