New Bio-Plastic is Good for the Environment + Employment

When plastic was invented, it was thought of as a miracle material
and manufacturers starting using it as a cheap alternative to
wood, metal and glass. But eventually the world realized that this
toxic, non-renewable, non-biodegradable material wasn’t as
miraculous as we had once thought. Researchers have been
looking for years for a suitable (but equally strong and versatile)
alternative to plastic. A material called Zeoform might be that
alternative.
Zeoform, developed by an Australian company, is made of natural,
biodegradable materials: cellulose and water. Using fibrous
material from plants like flax or hemp, or using recycled textiles
and paper, the process sounds rather simple. The material is
added to water and then ground into tiny pieces. It’s turned out as
pellets or sheets, which can then be formed into any imaginable
shape.
According to the company behind the miracle material, it can be
treated just like wood: it can be sanded, coated, or whatever is
necessary to create new products. The company isn’t just
concerned with their own bottom line, either – they believe that the
abandoned paper mills in many towns could be revived and
countless jobs created by simply retrofitting those paper mills to
make Zeoform. The crowdfunding campaign for the Zeoform
project is meant to raise awareness of the material and get the
open-source formula out to as many designers, makers, and
entrepreneurs as possible.