Milram to use biodegradable water bottles

Team Milram is doing its share to help the environment. In every race, the riders throw their empty water bottles to the side of the road, and while many are picked up by fans, not all are. Now, instead of polluting the environment, the German team will help it by using biodegradable bottles from its co-sponsor Tacx.

"We are very excited about this new innovation from Tacx. This is a necessary step in protecting the environment," said Marlies van Gerwen, the team's business manager. "In the past few years, we have received emails from people who got upset about the drink bottles thrown away during races."

Tacx makes a variety of trainers and bike accessories. It will provide Milram with 25,000 bottles over the season.

The Bio-Bottle, 100 percent biodegradable, is made of polyethylene with a small amount of a master batch additive which makes the polyethylene biodegradable. The material degrades within one to five years, and turns into a ground food source for microbes with no harmful residues.

Milram started its efforts last season when it started used environmentally-friendly products from the Swiss company Motorex to clean its bikes and team autos.

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