Why banana paper?
Banana paper is a unique paper. It protects not only trees and animals like elephants, but also reduces extreme poverty at the same time.
We aim at creating a world leading holistically sustainable paper. We have therefore connected this banana paper to all the 17 Global Goals. We integrate sustainability from the first stage in Africa (fair trade banana fiber) to the last stage (banana paper returns to soil after use). *1 *2.
We consume over 1.000.000 tons of paper PER DAY*1. About 90% of this is made from wood *2. In places like USA, Japan and Europe an average person use more over 200 kg of paper every year!
The global population has doubled since 1970, but the paper consumption has increased 5 times during the dame period. Regeneration of trees is far from catching up and we lose more trees than is regrown…
This in turn means an increase in CO2, loss of entire ecosystems and recuction of endangered species like tigers, elephants and orangutans..
Environmental problems contributes to poverty for people in especially developing countries where they rely on forest resources for food, fuel and income.
出展：*1 と*3 WWF2008-2010年 / *2ワールドウォッチ研究所2004
Recycled paper and FSC-certified paper is a part of the solution. But it is not enough. We believe there are even more ways in which paper can contribute to society. So, a new paper was born: the “Banana Paper”. The brand name is One Planet Paper®).
It has an advnced tracability through the Fair Trade Verification. We know who is making your paper, what kind of life our banana paper team lives, what animals live on the nearby savanna and in the forests.
Let’s take the next step: from the “Faceless paper” today, to a paper where you know who’s behind it!
It could take up to 30 years for a tree to grow before cultivation. Banana “trees” (stems) grow mature in just 1 year. Moreover, each banana stem bear fruit only once – and only 1 cluster per stem. When harvesting the banana fruit, the “mother stem” is cut to allow the next generation bananas to nourish. Old stems are ofte discarded as “waste”. It is from this waste we make fibers for the banana paper!
Organic banana field in Zambia, banana stem, wildlife in the same area
We buy stems from organic banana farmers in Zambia, generating an extra income for the farmers living in extreme poverty. Our banana paper Team in Zambia extract fibers from the stems, and those fibers are being turned into high quality printing paper at small scale paper factories in Japan and UK. Currently over 1000 people in extreme poverty areas benefits from the banana paper (July 2020).
