Natural polymers, biopolymers, and synthetic polymers based on renewable resources are the basis for the 21th portfolio of sustainable and eco-friendly plastics but high-volume consumable plastics continue to be dominated by nondegradable petroleum-based materials. Three factors have recently made biodegradable polymers economically attractive: (i) rising costs of petroleum production resulting from the depletion of the most easily accessible reserves, (ii) environmental and economic concerns associated with waste plastics, and (iii) emissions of carbon dioxide from preparation of petroleum-based materials. These pressures have driven commercial applications based on biodegradable polymers which are related to reduction of carbon dioxide in processing, such poly(hydroxy alkanoate) and poly(lactide). Since initial degradation of these polymers leads to catastrophic mechanical failure, it is necessary to control the rate of initial degradation for commercial applications. In this article, we have a critic review on the recent progress of polymer modification for the control of degradation.