The National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (NIIST), Thiruvananthapuram, a constituent laboratory of CSIR, has signed an agreement with East Corridor Consultant India Pvt. Ltd., a Lucknow-based clean-tech start-up, for transferring its technology for manufacturing single-use biodegradable tableware from rice and wheat waste.
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The developed cutlery is shelf-stable for up to 10 to 12 months and can serve hot/boiled solid and liquid food. It has enough tensile strength to hold food item according to its shape and can resist microbial growth for up to 12 months in India’s humid atmospheric conditions.
The manufacturing cost per plate of diameter 10 cm will range from ₹1.5 to 2, depending upon its quality, strength, and usability. Further, the cutlery, ideal for replacing disposable plastics, is fully degradable after use in normal conditions without composting within two months.
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CSIR-NIIST Director C. Anandharamakrishnan said the utilisation of agro residues (rice and wheat waste) for the production of biodegradable products would help increase the income of farmers through value addition and also reduce the severe air pollution caused by the burning of stubble wastes.
“Apart from reduced carbon footprint, the cutlery made using NIIST technology has the potential to create employment for rural people through supply of raw materials,” Dr. Anandharamkarishnan said.
“Entrepreneurs can set up plants that can be run on various modes of operations such as manual, semi-automatic, and automatic. The capacity ranges from 500 kg to 3 tonnes per day. Based on the mode of operation, the machinery cost will vary from ₹50 lakh to ₹2 crore,” he added.