Eco Vision-Eco Friend at Kodapadavu in Batwal taluk of Dakshina Kannada is one of the many units manufacturing disposable plates from the biodegradable areca sheath.
Rajaram CG Balipaguli, who set up the factory in 1994, says he exports two to three containers of 22 types of areca bio plates every month to Australia, Switzerland, Europe, Russia, and the Gulf countries. A container has about three to four lakh plates. At the factory, the areca palm leaves are washed, cleaned, and sterilized using ultraviolet rays to prevent fungal attacks. A gas-operated plate-making machine heat presses the leaf into the required shape. The plates are graded and the best ones are exported.
The disposable plates and bowls are an alternative to plastic and paper plates. The products are natural, compostable, and biodegradable yet look stylish. The demand is high within the country too.
Source –
https://www.google.com/search?q=areca+palm+leaf+plates&client=firefox-b-d&tbm=nws&sxsrf=AOaemvIXXtRH2eGbLci3GoB7iSnjkUQAOA:1634714176944&ei=QMJvYbHlOIq-9QPH9KL4DA&start=10&sa=N&ved=2ahUKEwixhc3uuNjzAhUKX30KHUe6CM8Q8tMDegQIARA3&biw=1536&bih=754&dpr=1.25