Plastics pollution is having a hazardous negative impact in our wildlife and oceans health, most of which attributes to packaging. Based on data in 2010, global plastic wastes numbers to 275 million tons per year, and nearly 3% of that, 8 million tons end up in oceans, perturbing the ocean ecosystem. And in 2015, the global waste went to 350 mn tons. And now, Tenith Adhithyaa, a young Indian’s innovative invention has probably paved a resolute solution for the peril, “Banana Leaf Technology”, that gathered a huge temptation worldwide in praises and honors to the revolutionary tech.
Banana Leaf Technology
Banana leaf technology’s core is the cellular enhancement’s technology to create organic bio-material, that is 100% eco-friendly, sustainable, chemical-free and cost efficient too.
Naturally, leaves have two-three days of lifespan and are then discarded as waste. This technology acts in preserving natural leaves and organic bio materials for a year without the use of any chemicals, which is then modelled as packaging materials or other products, which is durable for 3 years.
By preserving so, the leaves’ physical properties enhance, molding them as a viable biodegradable material, alternative to both plastic and paper. Processed leaves exhibit, increased durability, stretchability and crushability, making it to resist extreme temperatures and hold more weight than usual.
The technology enriches cells, strengthens the cell walls of leaves and prevents pathogenic agents from destroying the cells. The preserved leaves serve as packaging materials and products, and also sustain the natural color for one year in its 3year life-span.
By the way, as it’s a cellular enhancement tech, any kind of leaf is resilient to be served as packaging material.
A best-alternative
Plastics are headache
As said above, plastics are a big headache for the world, when it comes to disposing, being non-biodegradable in nature. The worst part of plastics wastes list to not properly managed or inadequately managed, leaving behind the wastes to drastically influence soil and ocean.
32% Plastic packaging products end in oceans & 20% landfills are caused by single-use plastics
Data shows that in developing and low-income countries, nearly 80-90% of the plastics are poorly managed, while only few developed countries decompose it in landfills.
Paper leads to Deforestation
Arguing of papers as an alternative, it poses a serious threat in cutting down of 7 billion trees worldwide, resulting in deforestation. Papers utilized for single-use products, asks for high in numbers of cut-down trees.
Advantages of Leaf Technology
- 100% Biodegradable, chemical free and an alternative to hazardous commercial products.
- Also serves as an animal fodder and in storing of food.
- Easy to dispose. Just throw it away in the ground, and it increases soil fertility.
- Processing of a single leaf requires $0.01 and According to him, the cost is 10 paise per straw when made out of banana leaf; a plastic straw costs 70 paise. A plate made out of banana leaves would cost around Rs 1 only when compared to plastic waste which costs Rs 4. Thus, cost-efficient.
Choosing leaf-tech, it solves deforestation, landfills, marine debris, acidification, global warming, coral bleaching, and soil erosion.
Inventor – Tenith Adhithyaa
Tenith Adhithyaa is the first Innovation Scholar of India and the inventor of Banana Leaf Technology, a cellular technology to create eco-friendly materials. The Banana Leaf Technology was formulated on 2010 by an 11-year-old Indian boy in Watrap Village of Tamil Nadu, India at his very own homemade laboratory. This technology was inspired by the dream to create a superior sustainable biomaterial to put an end to the environmental crisis. His will to revive the forgotten traditional South-east Asian practice made this research an emotional struggle to the inventor that he longed to make a global habit in this modern era.
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It all began when the inventor saw farmers dump heaps of leaves as trash due to the lack of a preservation technology, causing a huge economical void. The spark ignited when the question came to the mind, “can these leaves be enhanced biologically?”.
A serial innovator, teenage scientist, researcher, software developer, motivational speaker, science campaigner, professional coin collector, Guinness world record holder and a teacher at the age of 20 has 19 inventions. As the founder of the social innovation movement ‘Lets Innovate youth’, he empowered more than 89,000 youths worldwide since 2010.
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