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Plastic from Burlap? Bangladesh Invents a Green Throw-away Bag

Reuters

   DHAKA, BANGLADESH - As countries around the world try to cut down on
   throw-away plastic shopping bags, Bangladesh is hoping to cash in on an
   alternative: plastic-like bags made from jute, the plant fiber used to
   produce burlap bags.

   Bangladesh is the world's second biggest producer of jute after India,
   though the so-called "golden fiber" -- named for its color and its
   once-high price -- has lost its sheen as demand has fallen.

   Now, however, a Bangladeshi scientist has found a way to turn the fiber
   into low-cost biodegradable cellulose sheets that can be made into
   greener throw-away bags that look and feel much like plastic ones.

   "The physical properties are quite similar," said Mubarak Ahmad Khan, a
   scientific adviser to the state-run Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation
   (BJMC) and leader of the team that developed the new 'sonali' -- the
   Bengali word for golden -- bags. He said the sacks are biodegradable
   after three months buried in soil, and can also be recycled.

   Bangladesh is now producing 2,000 of the bags a day on an experimental
   basis, but plans to scale up commercial production after signing an
   agreement last October with the British arm of a Japanese green
   packaging firm.

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