Plenty Of Waste
Believe it or not, but London Marathon runners left behind 920,000 plastic bottles back in 2018. Many have no choice but to drop the bottles to the ground. Sadly, the plastic can take up to 1,000 years to fully degrade and contributes to the growing plastic epidemic happening around the world.
Making A Change
That was all about to change in 2019. Rather than offering up water at the 23rd mile, runners were given edible water pouches instead. They have no plastic. Runners can eat the pouches as they have no taste or they can drop them to the floor as they degrade in six weeks – leaving no waste in their wake.
The Idea
Skipping Rocks Lab is behind the Ooho water pouch. The pouches are made from seaweed and are perfect for storing water. The best bit? It’s not just the London Marathon that has used them to take a stand against plastic waste. Many festivals have also taken them on as a way to store drinks for party goers looking to have a good time without leaving their mark on the world.
Looking To Expand
It looks as though Skipping Rocks Lab want to make even more of a difference in the battle against plastic. The company has also expanded to use their idea for sauces as well as looking into ideas for sachets that could be used for hardware items and creating nets for fruits and vegetables. It seems as though this edible water pouch could be all we need to wave goodbye to the use of disposable plastics.
It looks as though the edible water pouches helped to make a significant impact on the plastic waste from the London Marathon. That’s right; 2019’s race reported 704,000 bottles left at the end – more than 200,000 less than last year.