New Year is around the corner and so is the season of exchanging gif. The right gift can either become one’s most prized possession or can simply be shoved in the corner of one’s closet for months. However, in the hustle-bustle of selecting the perfect gift, one must not end up creating extra waste, or adding carbon footprints which is why being mindful of such gifting decisions is pertinent. Sustainable alternatives such as plantable gifts can hence act as a conscious attempt at taking the prime message of sustainable living forward during festivals.
“The idea [behind plantable gifts] is to create a shift from ‘use and throw’ to ‘use and grow’,” mentions Saurabh Mehta, founder of BioQ Eco Solutions.
Steering the green way
Plantable paper is biodegradable eco-friendly paper that is made of waste and has seeds — they can be of flowering plants like marigold, seeds of vegetable plants or basil — embedded within. This means, the paper is made without harming any trees, and is thus, environmentally friendly. Once the purpose of the paper is over, the user can simply tear the folio in pieces, wet it and plant it in soil. A number of organisations have been using plantable paper to craft gifting options in a pursuit to let sustainable gift items take the lead.
“We try to launch various types of sustainable products revolving around festivals since this is the time people exchange the most gifts,” shares Neha Saharan, founder of Sow and Grow, a brand that manufactures sustainable products. She further adds, “People buy a lot of plastic hangings. We have been trying to replace those with soil hangings. First, you can hang them and then later you can sow them. It is good for the environment, is sustainable, does not create any waste since you can plant it after use”. They offer greeting cards, calendars, plantable stationery, Christmas ornaments and gardening kits among other products.
Plantables, an Agra-based company, also offers a variety of gifting options that are plantable and eco friendly. “The idea was to make sure that whatever we are making does not end in the landfill,” explains Garima Capoor, founder. Apart from cards and stationery they also offer a special gifting kit that contains types of seed paper, notepad and stationery items. “The paper has seeds embedded. Once a month gets over, you just plant it [the page] in soil. This way we are not creating any waste while also growing plants,” Capoor explains. Talking about the seeds that they implant in the paper, Capoor adds that mostly they focus on using seeds that are perennial and can grow in any weather condition.
GIFTS TO CHERISH
Buy plantable gifts from these places this New Year