How it’s Made and Why it Will Change the World
How much paper, plastic or Styrofoam do you use in a week?
For many people, these products are so ubiquitous that they don’t think about them. But think about the napkin that came with your burger at lunch, the paper bag it came in, the Styrofoam cup for your soda. Have you thought about where those items came from and where they’ll end up when you’re done?
But there’s change happening. Today’s consumers are thinking about these products, and they’re demanding domestic, environmentally friendly alternatives from the businesses they visit.
That’s where Earthable® comes in. Genera has begun developing its facility to produce agricultural fiber pulp alternatives to plastic and Styrofoam products. What’s our secret? Well, it starts with the farmers.
Back to the Land
The first step towards creating clean, renewable ag fiber pulp happens on a farm. Genera has long-standing relationships with farmers local to our East Tennessee facility. Our farmers produce high-yield, annually renewable fiber crops like switchgrass and biomass sorghum, and we work with them to ensure that they adhere to our management requirements and quality specifications.
Sourcing locally means Earthable® fiber has a low carbon footprint and supports American farm families, both qualities to be proud of.
The Pulping Process
Once our local farmers have delivered their crops to our facility, the fibers are pulped via our proprietary process that creates strong, unbroken fibers. This eliminates rough edges and makes for a strong, smooth finished product.
The process for creating agricultural fiber pulp is also easier on the environment than creating wood pulp. Conventional wood pulping uses harsh sulfur and chlorine. Earthable® fibers are unbleached and use a simpler mechanical process with only mild chemistry.
Thermoforming or Fiber?
After the pulping process, Earthable® can be sold as pulp to producers of tissue products like toilet paper, paper towels and napkins. But our East Tennessee facility can take Earthable® one step further with thermoforming technology.
With thermoforming, we transform Earthable® fiber pulp into durable, leak-resistant food service products like to-go containers, plates, cups and utensils that can replace plastic and Styrofoam.
Why it Matters
Earthable® fiber blends two causes everyone can get behind: caring for the environment and supporting American farm families. Earthable® fiber crops renew every year, eliminating the need to cut down trees for pulp. It is completely compostable and biodegradable. Buying crops domestically means American farmers have a reliable revenue stream. It preserves the rural way of life and keeps the Earthable® carbon footprint low.
If you would like to learn more about world-changing Earthable® fiber pulp, or if you would like to grow crops for Genera, we would love to hear from you. Just contact Genera Inc. online today.
