Flexible wood composite material

A composite material, comprising:

• a first component formed by a renewable polymer and a second component formed by a reinforcing material, wherein
• said first component comprises a thermoplastic polymer selected from the group consisting of biodegradable polyesters and mixtures thereof, wherein the biodegradable polyester comprises polylactic acid,
• said second component comprises particles of a hydrophilic material comprising a sieved size of less than 0.5 mm,
• said composite material further comprising:
• a third component formed by a polymer different from the polymer of the first component, said polymer of the third component being capable of forming regions of elasticity to provide for objects having properties of flexibility or semi-rigidity in at least one dimension,
• wherein the composite material is capable of being extruded into a three-dimensional tubular object having a wall thickness equal to or less than 0.5 mm,
• wherein the composite material comprises 30 to 70 parts by weight of the first component;
• 10-20 parts by weight of the second component;
• 10 to 40 parts by weight of the third component;
• 0.1 to 3 parts by weight of processing additives;
• wherein the third component is formed of polybutylene adipate terephthalate, PBAT,
• wherein the composite material consists of biodegradable components, and
• wherein the composite material is configured such that the particles of the hydrophilic material swell inside the composite material upon absorption of water by an amount of swelling that is sufficient to cause cracks to form in the composite material,
• wherein the cracks accelerate degradation of the composite material, and
• wherein compounding of the first component, the second component, and the third component into granules before extrusion is carried out at a temperature in the range of 110 to 210° C.