Less plastic: entrepreneurs that bet on compostable materials

Its raw material comes from nature and does not entail synthetic chemical processes, so they have the ability to biodegrad and composit.They are products that at the end of their useful life are not ruled out as garbage or as recyclable, but can decompose on earth.The composting cycle of organic matter is one of the clearest examples of circular economy, where the waste generated are returned to the soil in the form of nutrients.For now, the brands that innovate are counted to offer this type of alternative plastic products, but they grow firmly from the tendency towards a more responsible consumption.

Bamboo is one of the noblest elements that are repeated at the base of hygiene and gastronomy products, the items that step stronger in the transition to a more friendly production with the environment, with entrepreneurs and SMEs as allies.This plant of which there are 1500 species, originating in East Asia, Latin America and Africa, is 100% sustainable.Its rapid growth allows it to harvest it annually without causing exhaustion or degradation of soils;even emits 35% more oxygen than trees.

Dental brushes, sorbets, lenses and other bamboo products can be found, mostly, through e-commerce.What are really compostable?Sorbentables was born during the beginnings of pandemic in response to the recent prohibition and sale of plastic sorbets in the city of Buenos Aires and some other cities of the Atlantic coast.Constanza Avila Testa and Federico de Angelis, partners and couple, created reusable sorbets elaborated with whole stems of bamboo, without dyes or dyes, which makes them biodegradable and compostable.

“The raw material comes from own crops in the province of Buenos Aires where we do not use fertilizers, chemicals, or pesticides, and the product is totally handmade.The 13 million tons of plastic that the oceans receive every year, was one of the motivators to begin to rethink our consumption habits and start with this project, ”says Constance, a degree in Public Relations and founding partner of Sorbentables.The brand already has a agreement with Café Martínez, who began offering the bamboo sips in its eco-friendly store with the identity of the famous coffee shop.

Also made with this millenary and versatile plant, dental brushes appear as a sustainable alternative against the plastic classic.If we calculate an average consumption of four dental brushes per year: throughout their lives, only one person can consume almost 300 brushes that multiplied by the world population, are millions of brushes that, in general, end in theoceans or landfills at best.

Faced with a national bamboo brushes production, the Cosmetics and Ayurvedic Hygiene brand Sri Sri Tattva, for a few years, chose to import them and market them in Argentina.The elaboration of this product is somewhat more mechanized: the raw material is obtained from the bamboo forest in China with FSC certification, a carbonization process at high temperatures is pruned and suffers at high temperatures, which allows a machine to shape and polished the product, and then insert the sows.

The brushes are 97% biodegradable and compostable, and 3% recyclable, since, once their useful life is fulfilled, the sows must be extracted and deposited next to the recyclables: the handle goes to the compost. Para Michael Levy, presidente & CEO de Sri Sri Tattva Argentina, ”los productos sustentables son el futuro de las empresas”.In this regard, he explains that “consumers are increasingly attentive to world trends and the element chosen to replace plastic is bamboo.This collective conscience is a fundamental advance for society and for the care of the environment ”.

Another raw material that today arises with expectation as an alternative to reduce the problem of plastic waste that drowns the planet is the bioplastic, which is a derivative of renewable sources such as soybean oil, potato starch or cornstarch.With the treatment of biomass - sugar, starch, lipids, cellulose, hemicellulous and lignin - generated as a byproduct in agricultural activity, in biorephineries, pellets that are acquired by companies are produced to develop products that once used, can, can,partly, recycle and, on the other hand, composted.The bags have a resistance and impermeability similar to polypropylene bags.

Bioplastic production in our country is still in the experimentation stage, so, once again, it should be imported.Two years ago, Rosario Green Cycle was born, an e-commerce with shipping to the entire country that provides the wholesale and minor, packaging and gastronomic utensils, manufactured based on these compostable pellets.“They are achieved with excellent design and materials suitable for freezer, microwave ovens and, in some cases, conventional oven.We commercialize a lot to Delivery, Take Away and Hedes.A solution to reduce

With similar aspect to telgopor, in the online store, containers and plates based on sugarcane bagazo appear.There are also wheat stems sorbets, wheat bran dishes that can even be eaten, covered with Castilla cane and corn starch bags.Nothing is lost, everything is composed.

In numbers

Bamboo sorbets.Sorbentables can be used up to three years with regular cleaning and adequate conservation.Each kit comes with a cleaning brush and a saved/travel bag.Its degradation, in contact with the soil and an organic environment, is carried out in a period of between four to six months.

Bamboo dental brushes.Sudanta de Sri Sri Tatta brushes have a useful life similar to those of plastic: three months and/or until the sows are frayed.When this happens, you must first remove the sows that must be deposited in the recyclable basket and leave the handle for the composter.The degradation of the latter usually takes about six months.

Corn starch bags.Rosario Green Cycle Bags have flexibility, resistance and impermeability similar to polypropylene bags.They are used until they break.In contact with organic waste it begins to degrade in about a week and end their cycle before 180 days.

Chau, disposable: how to get involved in the day to day

From Eco House they propose some "small great actions" that make a difference.How to achieve it?You can start by making a list in your home from all the plastic that you generate, separate it and look for ecological alternatives whenever possible, compostable products are a great option.

Then it comes reuse.For example: