PLA is a bio-based plastic derived from renewable resources such as corn starch, tapioca roots, or sugarcane. To make PLA, sugar from plants is turned into lactic acid through fermentation which is converted into a polymer. At this stage, it is shaped into pellets which can be transformed into a wide variety of products. Manufacturing PLA produces 75% less greenhouse gases and uses 50% less non-renewable energy than conventional plastics.

Using recycled paper products or paper manufactured without the use of chlorine bleaching agents offers important environmental benefits. Every ton of recycled paper produces sixty pounds less chemical pollutants, saves seventeen trees and saves enough energy to heat and air condition an average home for six months. Advantages of producing natural unbleached paper versus bleached paper:

• 21% Less wood pulp used

• 10% Less greenhouse gases produced

• 6% Less waste water released

• 16% Less solid waste produced

source - BagCraft Papercon

Bagasse mulch is a byproduct of sugarcane plant stalks after harvest. Like Bagasse, bamboo mulch is formed after juice has been removed from the sugarcane or bamboo stalk, and is a product that would traditionally be thrown out and regarded as waste. This mulch is then heat pressed into the desired shape of the product using a high-heat, high pressure process to make sugarcane or bamboo fiber products and tableware for any establishment. Disposables that are made from paper can be easily made from sustainably sourced sugarcane fiber and break down or turned into compost.

Paper cups made from trees or wood fiber get landfilled, not recycled. In the US, over 50 billion paper cups are tossed in the trash and end up in a landfill every year. Because of our convenience culture, twenty million trees are cut down annually to manufacture paper cups. Can paper cups be recycled like other paper products? In almost all communities, the answer is no. That’s because paper cups need a plastic lining to be waterproof, and that lining is typically polyethylene made from petroleum. Over 231,000 barrels of petroleum are needed to line these paper cups. The use of paper made from bamboo fibers helps protect our fast dwindling forests and supports wildlife. The most sustainable cup is a reusable one. But for disposable cups, using leftover plant materials, instead of petroleum and trees, just makes sense.

The construction of Palm Leaf Plates is a natural, renewable, and simple process: Freshly fallen, naturally discarded sheaths of the leaves of the palm tree are collected. Each raw sheath is then rinsed with water to remove any clinging dirt. Once clean, the palm sheaths naturally air dry The palm leaves are then hand stretched and flattened. Various plate profiles, including round, square and hexagon-shaped dinner plates, are molded using a heated press. Multiple plates (of differing shapes and sizes) are often cut from each leaf in order to reduce waste. Once clean and cut, each plate is sun-dried and packaged.