UBC student creates environmentally friendly bamboo take out containers

Most of the packaging that piles up in landfills relies on harmful "forever chemicals." A UBC student has an alternative to all that plastic pollution.

A UBC student has developed a bamboo alternative to plastic take-out containers after researching the option for more than a year.

Camryn Collette, a master’s student in the faculty of forestry, told CTV News her goal is to someday have her bamboo plates used commercially and for more people to start thinking about bamboo as a viable eco-friendly alternative.

“Forty per cent of plastics are used for food packaging, that’s been a big area of focus,” said Collette.

As part of her research, Collette buried more than 300 of the bamboo plates, to watch how quickly they decomposed into the soil. She discovered the plates decayed in just six months, leaving behind tiny scraps.

Conventional plastic containers typically contain “forever chemicals” that are used for oil and grease resistance. Those chemicals have been found to be linked to plastic pollution and cause major health concerns.

Her bamboo plates contain a natural, starch-based alternative that helps with grease resistance but doesn’t harm the environment.

“A lot of people think that plastics are typically recycled, the reality is that only nine per cent of plastics produced actually are recycled,” she added.

And while the plates are great for the environment, she also found them to be durable for consumers.

“We found that the bamboo performs as well and even as better as other products that are commercially available on the market,” Collette said.

Bamboo is also a much more sustainable option, according to Chunping Dai, an associate professor at UBC’s faculty of forestry, who notes it is an alternative not only to plastic, but to wood.

While trees can take 50 to 100 years to grow, bamboo takes a fraction of that time.

“Bamboo grows incredibly fast: you could grow a small forest in a couple of months. It’s a renewable resource that can reduce our reliance on plastics while offering the durability takeout containers need, without polluting landfills for decades,” he said in a news release.

The research was supported by Bambooers Lifestyle Concept Limited, an industry partner.