Remember those disposable leaf plates and bowls that are used to serve ‘prasad’ or the purest food for man’s spirit at various religious spaces? Or, even the banana leaf used to serve South Indian cuisine? Hey wait, how did I forget the Pani-Puri wala?
Well, they have existed for way longer than we can even remember and they have always been a better option than your regular paper or plastic plates for they are bio-degradable and eco-friendly. Basically, they were cool when nobody cared about cool.
So, why am I talking about these disposable plates today?
Interestingly, a few people in Germany got really inspired by this age-old Indian traditional trend and started manufacturing plates and bowls made out of leaves and leaf-based compounds. This company, called Leaf Republic, is currently being run by a small group of people that consists of a team of engineers and designers to create products that are as aesthetically pleasing as they are eco-friendly.
But, what drove them to build this company? The Philosophy section on their website answers this question quite wonderfully.
We love to beautifully present things, to beautifully package them. Packaging is a part of our daily lives. There has always been packaging and there always will be. As the number of people and their consumption keep on growing, the packaging market has an impressive size all over the world – and now it is time to revolutionize it.
Why are they doing this?
Because we spend only a brief moment on this world. Everything we own is only temporary. What really counts is what we create, what we build up. What counts are our actions and our decisions. They last forever. They make up the true value of our being. If these actions lead to building up a sustainable, social, gainful company, then we will have the greatest job in the world.
They got their first funding through a Kickstarter campaign.
They provide a range of bowls, trays and plates in different shapes and sizes. Not just that, they also provide a bio-plastic lid, two layers of leaves with a waterproof layer of leaf-made paper sandwiched in between.
This sounds fantastic and we hope Leaf Republic makes it big for it might just help us save our planet.