What do hemp, shoes and shopping bags have in common?
Plasticana® made itself known with trendy and recyclable sandals, boots and other footwear made from hemp fiber-filled plasticised PVC. That same material now comes in the form of a durable shopping bag designed with equal quality standards.
As it’s designed for long-time performance, it’s non-biodegradable. It combines PVC, the least possible carbon-emitting plastic, and natural hemp fibers, which posses a high bio-sourced CO2.extracting power. And it’s recyclable.
Inventor Andre Ravachol says the tote bag is washable, water repellent, built to be strong and practical.
‘It’s perfect for extended use, in many different ways,’’ Ravachol says.
The two welded handles can carry loads of up to six kilos, and the two eyelets work as side reinforcement.
‘’You can also use them to hang your keys or tie up the bag,’’ he says.
Ravachol highlights the challenge was to move from injection molded articles, like shoes, to 300 µm thick calendared sheets to produce the bags. Developing the welding technique to ensure optimal resistance was crucial.
‘’In the end, we get a nice looking bag, with its trendy brown shimmering color coming from the caramelisation of hemp sugars (pectin),’’ says Ravachol. ‘’The color might change as you use it, but it can be regenerated with linseed oil to get a new patina.’’
Ravachol says his creation is among those products that can be "up-cycled" to different uses than its initial function. One unexpected but interesting application for these tote bags is turning them into plant pots, for instance to grow hemp and complete a full lifecycle!
Even if Plasticana® isn’t meant to be biodegradable, it can be mixed with other flexible end-of-life PVC to be reincarnated as a new product. Just send it in: the recycler Chaize SA, which is listed on the bag, will take care of it.
‘’This way, the bag owner can become an active link in recycling,’’ explains Ravachol.
