Can seaweed solve the plastic pollution problem?

Karlijn Sibbel is the Design Director of Notpla, an innovative, eco-conscious packaging start-up.

Founded in 2014 by designers Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez and Pierre-Yves Paslier, the company’s products feature the company’s blockbuster product Ooho, an alternative to plastic made from seaweed that is edible and fully biodegradable in just 4-6 weeks without the need for industrial composting or special conditions.

It’s reflective of a push in the design world to come up with alternatives to materials, which are polluting the planet at an alarming rate.

The UN reports that 300 million tonnes (331 million tons) of plastic waste are produced globally each year and that 60% of the plastic produced since early 1950 has been landfilled or discarded outdoors amassing 8.3 billion tonnes (9.15 billion tons).