- With Bangladesh’s growing economy and city dwellers’ purchasing capacity, the tendency to gather for parties and serve food has also increased in the country.
- With concerns for environmental protections, many of them are choosing biodegradable tableware instead of single-use plastic.
- A few local entrepreneurs are now producing tableware like plates and straws from biodegradable and locally available materials like areca leaves for plates and rice bran and jute for straws.
- However, entrepreneurs are struggling with production costs and are looking forward to the policy support that industries producing environment-friendly products usually receive in Bangladesh.
Bangladeshi people love to throw a party, as the disposable tableware industry has increasingly seen. They get together or organize social gatherings often, be it to celebrate festivals or go on group trips to touristy attractions. And all these occasions call for food and drinks.
Single-use plastic tableware has become the go-to option at these occasions. However, for the last couple of years, plates made from areca palm (Areca catechu) leaves have been gradually replacing plastic.
As per people involved in the industry, entrepreneurs in Bangladesh are producing about half a million areca leaf plates every month. Though the number is almost negligible compared to the single-use plastic plates, they said they believe that the popularity of such products is increasing among users.
Currently, about 10 local companies produce such biodegradable tableware. Ecovalley, Bright Areca and Shodeshi are some of them.
“As the industry is new and we do not have exact statistics, I assume that, currently, the total monthly plate production is about half a million. My company produces about 100,000 plates in a month based on demand,” said Imran Hossain, one of the partners of the country’s first and largest areca leaf tableware producer Bright Areca.
Similar statistics came from another major producer, Eco Valley, as the company’s director, Md Kamal, told Mongabay that they are producing about 60,000 plates every month.
“We started the production in 2021 with a monthly demand of around 20,000 pieces of plates. In four years, the production [increased] three-fold,” he said regarding the rising demand.
Data shows that, in 2018, Bangladesh used about 250 tons of single-use plastic tableware and straws per month, while a 2020 study showed the global demand for single-use plastic tableware in 2017 was 640 billion pieces, which was projected to increase over the years.
According to a 2021 study, considering the negative impacts on the environment, the European Commission issued a directive in 2019 to its members to reduce the sale of certain plastic products like plates and straws, which have more eco-friendly alternatives.
Areca leaf and other biodegrades
The areca palm’s nut, also known as betel nut, is commonly consumed across South and Southeast Asia with betel leaves for recreational purposes, and is hence grown widely.
In Bangladesh, areca nut trees are very common in the coastal districts Cox’s Bazar, Noakhali, Bhola, Lakshmipur, Patuakhali, Jhalakathi, Bagerhat, Barguna and Khulna.
Previously in Bangladesh, when the leaves died and dropped down from the trees, they were mostly used as fuel for fires or as mulch for soil.
In neighboring India, many rural communities have traditionally used areca leaves as plates for long. The country is one the largest areca nut producers in the world and entrepreneurs there have been using the leaves to produce tableware largescale since 2012.
Inspired by India’s areca tableware businesses, Bright Areca took the first initiative in Bangladesh in 2017 by setting up six machines; their current set-up has grown to 17 machines.
“Most of our products go to different superstores like Unimart and Meena Bazar in Dhaka. From there, the customers who need single-use [tableware] take them. Apart from this, some other buyers, especially event management farms and restaurants that operate events like parties, purchase these plates from the producers,” said Hossain.
In recent months, the demand for such products has been coming from abroad, too, and Bright Areca exported its first shipment to the U.S. in April this year.
Besides areca leaf plates, entrepreneurs are also trying to make biodegradable straws, another highly used item in restaurants for serving drinks.
Natural Sip Limited, a Bangladesh startup, is developing a straw to give people and businesses like restaurants and cafes a sustainable and healthier alternative to plastic straws. “We are trying to produce straws from rice husk, rice stubble and jute to replace plastic straws,” said Fazlur Rahman, co-founder and chairman of Natural Sip.
“Our product is in a trial run, and we believe we could supply about 100,000 pieces in the next couple of months to the restaurants in Dhaka who have already made a commitment to buy them,” he said.
The challenges
The much higher pricing of biodegradable tableware compared to the plastic ones is a concern for the growing industry.
As per a market survey, a 25.4-centimeter-diameter (10-inch-diameter) food-grade single-use plastic plate can be bought for $0.06 (8 takas), while an areca leaf plate costs $0.08-0.09 (10-12 takas). In the case of non-food-grade plastic plates, the price is as low as $0.03-0.04 (4-5 takas).
“Though the raw material is available in Bangladesh and can be collected at a low price, the major cost goes to electricity usage,” Kamal said about the reason for higher prices. “A single plate — based on the size — takes at least 3-4 minutes in up to 200 °Celsius [392 °Fahrenheit] of heating pressure to get shape and be sanitized, which ultimately costs more.”
“At the same time, as a factory, we are paying the electricity bill like other heavy industries, which makes the difference in the pricing. In Bangladesh, the cost per unit of power for commercial purposes is 12.95 takas [$0.10], while for households, it is 4.63 takas [$0.03],” he said.
Syeda Rizwana Hasan, advisor to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, said, “We are trying to promote the industries that are producing environment-friendly products and reducing the use of plastic. The areca leaf-related industry is newer in Bangladesh, and they are in our consideration for receiving policy privileges.”
The other important concern is the seasonal dependency to collect the raw material, as the leaves need to be dry and clean for use in the machine. The producers cannot get suitable material during the monsoons (July to September).
“To overcome this hassle, we need to invest more money at a time to store leaves in order to run the machine around the year,” Kamal said.
Banner image: Areca leaves and plates. Image courtesy of Ecovalley BD.
Bangladesh continues promotion of biodegradable bags amid battle against polythene
Citations:
Boro, M., Devi, R. J., & Sharma, P. L. S. (2020). Biodegradable Cutleries and Tableware as Substitute for Plastic: An Exploratory Study on Green Solutions. International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI), VII(VI). Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/366016421_Biodegradable_Cutleries_and_Tableware_as_Substitute_for_Plastic_An_Exploratory_Study_on_Green_Solutions
Dordevic, D., Necasova, L., Antonic, B, Jancikova, S., & Tremlová, B. (2021). Plastic cutlery alternative: Case study with biodegradable spoons. Foods. MDPI, 10(7). doi:10.3390/foods10071612
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