Sugarcane Bagasse Creates Perfect Tableware: Low Cost, High Strength, Waterproof and Oil-Resistant, Degrades Half in 2 Months!

India has long been a leading global producer of sugar. In the 2018-2019 sugar season (October 2018 to September 2019), India's total sugar production reached 33.07 million tons, surpassing Brazil to become the world's number one producer. In the 2022/2023 season, India's sugar production reached 33.6 million tons, with exports totaling nearly 7 million tons. This high sugar production brings significant economic benefits but also results in an enormous amount of sugarcane bagasse.

It is estimated that India generates around 4 million tons of sugarcane bagasse annually. Managing this bagasse is a headache for sugar factory owners. Left piled up near the factory, it becomes foul-smelling and acidic, worse than the water of the Ganges! It's quite a problem.

However, one day, people discovered that the fibers of sugarcane bagasse can naturally twist together, forming a dense, web-like structure. This material can then be used to create eco-friendly tableware such as food containers. These new green tableware products have good hardness, meet the needs for takeaway packaging and home use, and are safe for food. They are also biodegradable, breaking down into organic matter in the natural environment.

These organic substances typically consist of carbon dioxide and water. If leftover food is composted with such containers, it could save time on waste sorting! Additionally, sugarcane bagasse can be directly composted with microbial agents and used in flowerpots to grow plants. It helps loosen the soil, improve its aeration, and adjust the pH level.

Experimental results show that sugarcane bagasse-based biodegradable food containers can decompose completely in about 120 days underground. The experiment also compared their oil resistance and metal content, revealing that the heavy metal content is only 1/8 of the standard value, making them very safe. The containers perform well in terms of oil and water resistance, which meets the requirements for food containers.

Using sugarcane bagasse to make containers not only benefits the environment but also conserves limited forest resources. Additionally, the strength and quality of the final product are ensured. Sugarcane bagasse fibers are of high quality, making the containers strong and resistant to breakage. The containers are also lightweight, easy to handle, and exhibit good fire resistance, unlike plastic, which is highly flammable. As previously mentioned, they also perform well in terms of oil and water resistance, meeting the requirements for food containers.

Moreover, sugarcane bagasse food containers are highly versatile and recyclable. Despite being hard, when processed into a slurry, sugarcane bagasse becomes highly moldable and can be shaped into different forms of containers or made into various boards and high-density composite materials, which can be used in home décor and other industries.

In the future, biodegradable products are set to replace plastic, and addressing white pollution is a global responsibility.