Final July, India banned single-use plastic gadgets reminiscent of plastic straws, plates, knives, and cutlery. However a lot earlier than the ban, this Bengaluru-based startup Sunbird Straws has been doing its bit to curb plastic air pollution with its distinctive innovation.

Saji Varghese, an affiliate professor at Christ College Bengaluru, makes straws from coconut leaves. The concept to make such straws got here to him when he seen a number of dry coconut leaves mendacity on the campus floor.

“Annually a coconut tree naturally loses as much as six of its leaves. These leaves are merely burnt as a result of problem of their disposal. So in 2017, I made a decision to create an eco-friendly product utilizing coconut leaves,” says the 51-year-old.

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In simply two years, he developed distinctive coconut leaf straws. As per Saji, practically 200 straws may be comprised of one fallen coconut entrance.

Created utilizing a chemical-free course of, the patented multi-layered straw has pure anti-fungal and hydrophobic outer and internal partitions. These are one hundred pc biodegradable and can be utilized in any drink for as much as three hours. Every straw is priced at Rs 5.

Saji claims to have obtained orders for greater than 20 million straws from over 10 nations and has been honoured globally. He additionally employs 100 rural girls from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka to supply the consuming straws.

Watch how Saji makes straws from coconut leaves on this video:

Edited by Pranita Bhat