With eliminating plastic straws becoming the new cultural trend, what is the next step in the journey to help the environment? With quite a few promising solutions on the way, there is hope on the horizon when it comes to plastic in our oceans.

A new solution to the plastic problem?

One of those awesome new solutions to ocean plastic comes from an unexpected source. Saltwater Brewery developed special packaging that is more than just recyclable. It’s actually edible. That’s right! Instead of a typical plastic ring that holds the cans together, this special material is meant to be eaten by sea creatures.

From plastic trash to tasty snack.

These rings are a combination of barley and wheat ribbons (both of which come from the brewing process). This allows Saltwater Brewing to use what used to be thrown away as waste, as something edible for animals! Taking initiative from the edible drink rings, there may be many “waste products” that a company produces that could be utilized for something nobler! We can’t forget that second R of Re-use!

Plastic Problems

Millions of creatures are harmed each year from plastic and other related trash. Some of this harm comes from drink rings. Almost all drink rings eventually end up in the ocean. The National Academy of Sciences states:

“Plastic pollution in the ocean is a rapidly emerging global environmental concern, with high concentrations (up to 580,000 pieces per km²) and a global distribution, driven by exponentially increasing production. Seabirds are particularly vulnerable to this type of pollution and are widely observed to ingest floating plastic. We used a mixture of literature surveys, oceanographic modeling, and ecological models to predict the risk of plastic ingestion to 186 seabird species globally. Impacts are greatest at the southern boundary of the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans, a region thought to be relatively pristine. Although evidence of population-level impacts from plastic pollution is still emerging, our results suggest that this threat is geographically widespread, pervasive, and rapidly increasing.”

But does it work?

Saltwater Brewery engineered their drink rings in a way that makes them biodegradable, edible and strong enough to maintain standards. Saltwater Brewery claims that they are as resistant and durable as their plastic counterparts! Nobody wants to chase a beer can across the grocery store parking lot.

People love their beer AND their impact

One customer said:

“It’s good beer, it’s good for the ocean, I LOVE these guys!”

Another said:

“Some of the big guys should learn from this small brewery!”

With these new, edible drink rings, it just may inspire some other innovative companies to follow suit. The cool part is that the more large companies adopt this innovative strategy, the cheaper the rings are to make!

And we all want to know…

“We’ve all eaten it. It does taste like cardboard,” Gove said.

While we may not be dining on these new rings ourselves, we do get to see its impact in the world that we all live in together.

Who would have guessed drinking beer would help the environment? Learn more in the video below.

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Source: Animal Channel