The present invention comprises an impermeable coating on an organic substrate resulting in a material that is inert, environmentally safe, impermeable and fully compostable and biodegradable. The present invention, therefore, is ideally suited to meet the ever-growing demand for compostable containers, as used in the food, beverage, agricultural, consumer products, medical, and waste industries, for example, including vacuum packaging and anti-static packaging. A possible substrate, such as a cellulose or polyactide (PLA) film and a possible coating, such as a ceramic coating of SiO.sub.2 (silicon di-oxide), are derived from organic substances and, thus, both completely degrade under natural conditions. Moreover, this biodegradation can occur under compost conditions as defined in numerous international standards, including at least ASTM D 6400.