Spit-activated biobased batteries, glow-in-the-dark trees, kombucha clothes, biobased root canals, breakthroughs in degradable plastics, straws: The Digest’s Top 10 Innovations for the week of August 29th

#6 3 Breakthroughs in degradable, edible straws from Diageo, New Materials Institute, Wisefood

Get boozy and be green: UK alcohol beverage company offering edible, flavored straws

In the United Kingdom, alcoholic beverage company Diageo is offering an innovative solution to the growing prevalence of plastic straw bans: edible, flavored straws that will come with certain pre-mix cans.
The straws are available in strawberry, chocolate, lemon and lime flavors. They will be paired with Pimm’s & Lemonade, Gordon’s Gin & Tonic, and Baileys & Iced Coffee Latte cans.
David Croft, global sustainable development director, Diageo, tells Talking Retail, “Diageo is committed to minimizing our environmental impact and we are, like many of our consumers, increasingly concerned about the negative environmental impact associated with the irresponsible disposal of plastic straws.” More on the story.

UGA to test first fully biodegradable plastic straw

In Georgia, researchers at the University of Georgia’s New Materials Institute and the RWDC Environmental Stewardship Foundation will develop a fully biodegradable plastic straw thanks to an award from Singapore’s Temasek Foundation Ecosperity. This PHA resin is bio-based and fully biodegradable. The formula will be used to create a prototype for the world’s first fully biodegradable plastic straw, according to their press release.
The $719,000 award represents the top prize in Ecosperity’s inaugural Liveability Challenge and was presented to RWDC Industries in July in Singapore. The next step is for RWDC and the New Materials Institute to create prototypes. Then they must prove the straws can be manufactured consistently, produced at a scale to meet global demand and are fully biodegradable in soil, fresh water and marine water. Testing largely will be conducted in a New Materials Institute laboratory built with RWDC grant funding. More on the story.

Apple mush: The latest straw replacement material

In Germany, a Langenbernsdorf-based startup is producing straws made from apple pomace, a solid mush left over from the apple juice production process.
Wisefood’s straws, dubbed Eatapple, have the potential to replace plastic straws subject to increasing legislation globally.
The edible straws nonetheless have a short shelf-life in beverages. “In alcohol, our straw keeps its shape for 45 minutes, in juice, for only 20,” Wisefood’s co-founder Konstantin Neumann tells Handelsblatt. The company is using money from a 2017 crowdfunding campaign to improve that useful life to several hours. One hundred Eatapple straws sell for $50. The European Union estimates that more than 36 billion straws are thrown out each year. More on the story.