The Garland Company, Inc. announced that it has earned the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Certified Biobased Product Label for Green-Lock^® Plus Membrane Adhesive.

Green-Lock Plus is a low-odor, 100% solids, fast-curing membrane adhesive that contains zero VOCs and is ideal for use on projects seeking to meet sustainability goals or local requirements.

The Green-Lock^® Plus Membrane Adhesive can now display a unique USDA label that highlights its percentage of biobased content. Third-party verification for a product's biobased content is administered through the USDA BioPreferred^® Program, which strives to increase the development, purchase, and use of biobased products.

Biobased products help address climate change by offering renewable alternatives to petroleum-based products; sequester carbon dioxide, lowering the concentration of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere that contribute to climate change; create and expand markets; are generally safer for people and the environment than their petroleum-based counterparts; and represent incredible technological advances and innovations.

The USDA Certified Biobased Product Label displays a product's biobased content, which is the portion of a product that comes from a renewable source, such as plant, animal, marine, or forestry feedstocks. Utilizing renewable biobased materials displaces the need for non-renewable petroleum-based chemicals. Biobased products are cost-comparative, readily available, and perform as well as or better than their conventional counterparts.

“Green-Lock Plus shows you don’t have to sacrifice high performance for sustainability,” said Matt McDermott, President of Garland’s US Roofing Division. “The Biobased Product Label reminds architects, building owners, and roofing contractors that the product they are working with delivers value far beyond its outstanding performance as an adhesive. We are excited and honored to have attained this certification.”

"We applaud The Garland Company, Inc. for earning the USDA Certified Biobased Product Label," said Vernell Thompson, USDA BioPreferred Program. "The label is intended to help spur economic development, create new jobs, and provide new markets for farm commodities. But the label also makes it easier for consumers and federal buyers to locate biobased products and consider planet-friendlier options during purchase decisions. By having their products become USDA Certified Biobased, The Garland Company, Inc. joins an expanding list of businesses combatting inaccurate marketing claims and the practice of greenwashing, while also contributing to a thriving bioeconomy that decreases our reliance on petroleum."

In the latest Economic Impact Report released by USDA, the biobased products industry supported 4.6 million American jobs; contributed $470 billion to the U.S. economy and generated 2.79 jobs in other sectors of the economy for every biobased job. Biobased products also have a substantial environmental impact, displacing about 9.4 million barrels of oil a year, with the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 12.7 million metric tons of CO2 equivalents per year.