Plastic pollution in our oceans is a major problem for wildlife. Around the world, it is estimated that at least 1 million sea birds and 100,000 marine mammals and sea turtles become entrapped in plastic or ingest it and die each year. One of the worst offenders are plastic packaging rings used to hold 6-packs of beer and soda together.
Looking to help solve the problem, one Florida craft brewery in Delray Beach–Saltwater Brewery–has come up with an edible six-pack ring. They developed the packaging solution for six-packs using grain left over from the brewing process, and the resulting product is claimed to be not only 100 percent biodegradable and compostable, but also edible for fish and other sea life.
“Most plastic beer six‐pack rings end up in our oceans and pose a serious threat to wildlife. Together with WeBelievers, we ideated, designed, tested and prototyped the first ever Edible Six Pack Rings. A six‐pack packaging, made with byproducts of the beer making process, that instead of killing animals, feeds them.”
Edible six-pack ring by Saltwater Brewery in Florida
It’s not the first environmentally-friendly move by the brewery.
“All of our spent grain is used to feed local cattle. By local, we mean local, The cows are fed only 30 miles from the Brewery. All of the beef is free range.”
The Ocean Conservancy’s 2015 Ocean Trash Index cites plastic as among the most common trash item ingested by sea turtles in 2015. The index also explains that littering isn’t the sole culprit for plastic in the ocean – plastic can also be blown by the wind from a trashcan or landfill, or end up in a storm drain and then travel through pipes into the ocean.
Bravo, Saltwater Brewery!
For more information:
www.saltwaterbrewery.com