Nearly half of all plastic waste generated is the result of single-use plastics, meaning that much of the plastic in our streets, oceans, and rivers could be reduced by developing compostable alternatives. Thankfully, erthos, co-founded by Nuha Siddiqui (BComm 2018) and Kritika Tyagi (BSc 2019), is developing new eco-friendly plastic alternatives.
For their company’s first official pilot, the co-founders took a targeted approach to figure out where their resins could be utilized. Looking beyond the obvious has allowed erthos to find the best product market fit. That’s why the erthos team worked with Anheuser-Busch InBev’s 100+ Accelerator to develop compostable keg caps. While this item may seem small compared to more common plastic products, replacing them with erthos’ eco-friendly alternatives can reduce the amount of waste on an industrial scale.
The erthos team devises plant-powered solutions that are sustainable and compatible with existing manufacturing technology. Making something that can be integrated into established systems means fewer upfront costs and less resistance from the market. It’s easy to swap out traditional plastic inputs for erthos’ inputs since they use the same infrastructure during the production process.
One of the main features of erthos’ inputs is that they are compostable. Consumers can break products made with erthos’ solutions into smaller pieces and toss them into their home composting bin once they’re done using it. Once composted, erthos products turn into rich soil from which more plants can be grown, creating a true circular economy.
Not only do erthos’ compostable solutions divert plastic from polluting our environment, their materials are designed to save over 40% of energy, and preserve 98% of watercompared to traditional plastics, without all the toxins.