The past 70 years of plastic waste have resulted in pollution so ubiquitous scientists say it’s a marker of a new geological epoch, the manmade Anthropocene.

Plastic cutlery is a contributor to this enormous problem – estimates suggest the US alone uses 40bn plastic utensils a year – but the founder of Indian cutlery company Bakeys thinks he might have a solution. Cutlery you can eat.

The vegan friendly spoons are made from rice, wheat and sorghum, an ancient grain originally from Africa. Sorghum was chosen as a primary ingredient for its tough quality (it doesn’t go soggy in liquids) and because it is suitable for cultivation in semi-arid areas.

The cutlery comes in three flavours – savoury (salt and cumin), sweet (sugar) and plain. “It tastes like a cracker, a dry cracker because we don’t put any fat in it. It can complement any food. The taste of the food gets into the spoon,” says company founder Narayana Peesapaty

Bakeys’ crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter had a goal of $20,000 (£14,000) but has already raised 12 times that. A parallel campaign on Indian platform Ketto has exceeded its 100,000 rupee (£1,050) goal 24 times over. Peesapaty says he has had emails pouring in from around the world. “It is so simple and it is this simplicity that has caught the attention of most people,” he says.

Orginal Source