Plastic is a cheap, fast-to-make and easy-to-use material. Because of this, however, the global usage of plastic is starting to cause a real problem, as plastic takes hundreds of years to decompose naturally, even thousands with some plastic products. That is why many companies around the world are fighting this issue with alternative materials that take days to decompose instead of years. Here are 14 great examples of what is being done in this field, and I must say the creativity is really encouraging!
1. This Thai supermarket uses banana leaves instead of plastic to wrap products.
2. Some restaurants use wild grass or pasta to replace plastic straws.
3. While some cafes sell reusable metal straws you can clean and use again.
4. This fascinating package is actually made of agar-agar and water only. It will degrade at the same rate as its contents!
5. Using loofahs instead of kitchen sponges
6. This is the first 100% plastic-free store, recently opened in Slovenia.
7. Making confetti from fallen leaves makes a lot less mess.
8. This may look like cheese or soap but these are bars of shampoo, manufactured so no bottles are needed.
9. This cup may look like plastic, but it's actually made of plant starch.
10. Another fascinating packaging material is caramelized sugar, coated with wax. You open it like cracking an egg, and it melts when it comes in contact with water.
11. These are both environmentally friendly and adorable.
12. This one explains itself. So glad to see some companies take the extra step.
13. Origami pill cases made from recycled paper work just as well.
14. Single-use cutlery made from avocado seeds and completely biodegrades in 240 days (while plastic cutlery can take hundreds of years).
