No different to many other cities in developing countries, Chiang Mai suffers the growing pains of pesky plastic waste. In recent years, though, a small but determined band of resistance have been doing their bit in and around town to help reduce, re-use and recycle the man-made stuff.
So when Perfect Homes spotted a rather nifty alternative to Earth-unfriendly packaging the other day at a branch of Rimping Supermarket, we couldn’t help but get fired up! As well as offering shoppers the option to buy or borrow a cloth bag in store, the popular grocery outfit now bundles its Veggie First fresh greens in banana leaves finished with a fibre tie. Not that the idea of leaf-wrapped edibles is anything new in the Land of Smiles; folk have been doing it for decades. But to see it in a supermarket, we snapped away at the assorted produce with nothing more than a mobile phone then gave a quick shout out to Rimping on the Perfect Homes Facebook page. Little did we imagine the response…
Logging into the social networking site the very next day, we could barely contain our amazement to see our post was being shared on average some 500 times an hour meaning it had gone viral; first in Thailand and Vietnam before spreading like crazy to the rest of the world! So far, it’s chalked up more than 3.5 million views and 16,000 shares with a number of netizens tagging their own local supermarket for them to, ahem, take a (banana) leaf out of Rimping’s book!
Copyright – Perfect Homes Chiang Mai perfecthomes.co.th
Copyright – Perfect Homes Chiang Mai perfecthomes.co.th
Copyright – Perfect Homes Chiang Mai perfecthomes.co.th
Copyright – Perfect Homes Chiang Mai perfecthomes.co.thNot to mention sparking hundreds of comments. “Congratulations on leading the way”, “logical and practical”, “brilliant idea” and “ingenious” were written in support. While others gushed about the added visual appeal of the natural wrapping saying “This is actually beautiful” and “Looks more appetising”; and being organic so biodegradable, another user weighed in with “Great compost for the garden”!
In no time at all, our post was headlining at Forbes and other news media channels right around the globe. Heck, we’ve even been contacted by the German press and TV stations in the Philippines!
When it comes to cracking Chiang Mai’s plastic troubles, for sure there’s still a long way to go; but kudos to Rimping Supermarket for a positive step in the right direction. And if it means just one less plastic bag littering the landscapes, fouling the waterways and choking the storm drains in this fair Northern Rose of ours, then we reckon it was well worth us posting!
What do you think of Rimping’s tradition-inspired solution to help cut the use of plastic in Chiang Mai? Remark away in the comments section below!
15 thoughts on “Exciting new plastic saving initiative in Chiang Mai local supermarket goes VIRAL!”
Fantastic solution to stop using plastic produce bags!
What a wonderful idea but is it practical for people living where bananas don’t grow to think of getting into this practice?
Hi Robin, you are right there are limitations, but I am guessing many countries get their plastic bags from China. Maybe we can get the Banana leaves from overseas too.
I think there must be other alternative leaves that could be used, any ideas?
How about taro leave they grow only in tropical area though
Great. Now if only we could do this kind of biodegradable packaging globally!
If this post saved just one plastic bag we would be happy! But lets hope there are many more ideas to follow.
Fantastic idea, I hope other food stores will do this.
So do we! Fingers crossed.
Brilliant!!! It’s about time!!!
Funny thing is, I think this used to be quiet normal in Thailand then plastic took over and is a major problem here. But lets hope it is a step back in the right direction
But I can’t imagine the supply of banana leaves would last so long considering all the foods wrapped with so many food companies?
In case you were curious
04.08.19
Plastic bottles have surpassed plastic bags as the biggest threat to oceans and rivers
Plastic bottles have surpassed plastic bags as the biggest threat to oceans and rivers
[Photo: Hans/Pixabay]
BY MELISSA LOCKER
1 MINUTE READ
The good news is that consumers in Europe have done a great job curbing their use of plastic bags, and fewer are ending up in waterways around the world. The bad news is that now plastic bottles are clogging oceans and rivers.
According to the new Plastic Rivers report from Earthwatch Europe and Plastic Oceans UK, plastic bottles are now the most prevalent form of plastic pollution in European waterways. Coming in second are food wrappers, like potato chip bags and candy bar wrappers, followed by cigarette butts.
Here’s how the list of visible litter shakes out:
Bottles: 14%
Food wrappers: 12%
Cigarette butts: 9%
Disposable food containers: 6%
Cotton-swab sticks: 5%
Takeaway cups: 4%
Not only are Coke bottles, Camel butts, Frito-Lay packages, and some stranger’s ear wax-laden Q-tip nasty to look at while you’re trying to appreciate nature, but they kill wildlife and fish and are difficult to clean up.
As The Guardian notes, while much reporting has been done on the plastic polluting the world’s oceans, about 80% of that ocean plastic starts as river pollution. Some experts believe that cleaning the trash out of rivers is the best way to curb plastic in the ocean. Well, the second best way: Cutting out single-use plastic products remains the best way to fight plastic pollution. The EU is working on that as it recently passed legislation to ban many single-use plastics by 2021.
Going back to the good news: It’s clear that consumer efforts can pay off. After years of consumers bringing their own bags to the store, ponying up for plastic bag fees, or voting in plastic bag bans, the fight against plastic bag pollution seems to be working. According to the report, plastic bags now make up only 1% of plastic rubbish in freshwater in Europe.
But I love plastic bags! SO useful.
The problem is not the bags, the problem is people (like you, driver of a big gas guzzler) who cannot get rid of their junk properly.
Hi Hay Maker, thank you for your interesting comment. Really my 250cc scooter is classed as a big gas guzzler?? That is interesting to know!
What a great idea; banana leaves as wrappers. Will look for this in the markers.
On a seperate account, but about plastic, the packs of instant “noodle” soup. Three to a pack; wrapped in plastic; the individual cup wrapped in plastic; and the cup itself. Not sure about the cup; recycle or not. but there are four plastic wrappers in one purchase of instant noodles. Must be a solution to this!
Thanks to Rimping!
I think it is time to think about too much plastic waste in Thailand and all over the world. This is a very good step to reduce plastic waste