Ideonella sakaiensis is a bacterium from the genus Ideonella and family Comamonadaceae capable of breaking down and consuming the plastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET) as a sole carbon and energy source.

Is it true that bacteria can eat plastic?

Scientists have discovered bacteria that are able to biodegrade plastics from polymers back into ... ... After scooping up some sludge from outside a bottle recycling facility in Osaka, they discovered bacteria which had developed the ability to decompose, or “eat,” plastic.

How plastic eating bacteria actually work?

How this plastic-eating bacteria works. Plastics are polymers, meaning they have a long repeating chain of molecules. ... By secreting an enzyme which “eats” the chemical bonds in the chain, the molecules are broken down into their smaller components, making them easier to be recycled.