Bananas grow off a trunk-like structure called the pseudostem. After the harvest, this section of the plant is usually discarded since it will never grow again. Growing bananas is a particularly wasteful form of agriculture compared to other fruit crops because only 12% of the plant is used, with the rest ending up in the landfill.
To bring value to that waste, Ugandan startup TexFad is turning it into high-quality, sustainable textile products. The startup extracts the fiber from the banana tree’s trunk used to make environmentally friendly products like carpets, textiles, and biodegradable hair extensions.
The Process
First, the banana tree trunks are split in half with machetes and fed through a cutting machine. The machine turns these trunks into long, leathery fibers that are hung to dry before being processed and turned into high-quality eco-friendly products.
Kimani Muturi, the founder of TexFad, said his company is testing out several uses of banana fibers – producing various items such as carpets and market-testing eco-friendly hair extension products. “The hair extensions we are making are highly biodegradable. After using, our ladies will go and bury them in the soil, and they will become manure for their vegetables,” he explained to Reuters.
Goals And Expectations
Muturi envisions the material replacing some synthetic fibers and making paper products such as banknotes among a range of possible applications. For now, TexFad is exploring ways to soften banana fibers so that they can be used to make clothing.
The startup expects to produce 2,400 carpets by the end of this year and plans to begin delivering its products to the UK, US, and Canada by June.
Other Products Made From Banana Waste
TexFad isn’t the only company to turn banana waste into eco-friendly products. Last year, Australian researchers developed a method that transforms banana Agri-waste from the banana industry into non-toxic, biodegradable, and recyclable bioplastic packaging material.
Others include a Brazilian university student Rafaella de Bona Gonçalves, who developed biodegradable banana fiber tampons for homeless women in 2019. Her invention earned her a distinguished award – the 2019 German “iF Design Talent Award.”