We all want versatile and easy-to-use bags to carry necessary things, and tote bags are one of those bags we can rely on. These bags have been in the market of shopping bags for years now, and their trends keep coming up. These bags can be made or bought with personalized designs to make a fashion statement while being mindful of the environment.
But what actually makes it so attractive for all sorts of users? Read to find it out.
What is this Material Called Jute?
Ok, so first of all what is this jute? Jute is basically a vegetable fibre like cotton, linen, hemp, etc. What makes this different from other ones? Jute is stronger and cheaper to produce and still, its production levels are similar to that of cotton.
It is made from the outer stem and the skin of a jute plant and is primarily produced in Bangladesh & The Bengal Part of India. It is literally called the “golden fiber” for its color and high cash value.
In present times, Jute is the strongest all-natural fibre available throughout the globe while also being reusable and biodegradable.
Not Boring but Brief History of Jute Bags
Jute has been used since ancient times and was primarily used as a rope, weaving fibre or packaged bags to carry heavy things. It was used by many business owners and armies because of its strength, ease to produce and low cost.
In India, historical documents of Mughal Emperor Akbar (Ain-e-Akbari by Abul Fazal in 1590) state that poor people of that time used to wear clothes made out of jute.
Even in the Modern Age, it was used heavily in Napoleonic Wars, American Civil War and as its usage increased globally so did the mills of juteThe famous Acland Mill in India was the first jute mill established in 1855 by British entrepreneur George Acland and Bengali Financier Babu Bysumber Sen, Bengal Presidency, British India.
How is this Jute Packaging Done?
To make bags and other cloth items, the jute fibre is taken from the stem and outer skin of the jute plant. After immersing the stems in slow running water, the non-fibrous material can be scraped off, allowing workers to pull the fibres from the jute stem.
Firstly, the jute fibre is taken from the stem and outer skin of a jute plant.
Next, the stems are immersed in slow-running water. By doing this the non-fibrous materials are scraped off.
Lastly, the scraping off non-fibrous material allows workers to pull the main fibres from the jute stem which they use as a key component to weave, structure and make a bag/sack.
Got the Gist, but Why Use It?
By this time if you’re reading this you already know some of the benefits of jute packaging. It is eco-friendly, easy to produce, low-cost, sustainable and durable. But just how much would these aspects really affect you and the whole world?
Let’s Find Out.
1. Eco-Friendly
Yes, you already know jute is eco-friendly. It’s a good replacement for plastic which is non-biodegradable thus staying in our lands and water forever. On the contrary, Jute is biodegradable, so it will decompose on its own and keep the environment pollution free.
But you already know these. What you might not know is that jute also contributes to providing oxygen for the environment. Think about it, as jute fibre is extracted from the jute plant, the plant consumes carbon dioxide and produces oxygen. In fact, it produces 11 tons of O2 and consumes 15 tons of CO2 in just a few months.
Also, it doesn’t need pesticides, rather after harvesting jute, more are planted in the same area as jute enriches the soil it grows in.
Another important fact is that we can save millions of trees from using jute bags. Every year thousands of trees are cut to make furniture which can be replaced by jute as it has a woody core named hurd. Hurd has the potential to meet the majority of the world’s wood needs and it’s still an untapped market.
So, you get to produce more oxygen and consume carbon dioxide, avoid pesticides, improve the soil, save millions of trees AND replace plastic with a biodegradable product, ensuring maximum environmental safety by using jute.
2. Cost-Effective
From the cost perspective, there are two cases. One is from a personal buyer perspective and another is from the whole macroeconomy perspective.
While jute is the go-to product to make the environment a safer place, it’s not a big expensive product to use. You can even have a jute bag for under $5. Of course, you can buy many handcrafted fashionable ones, but you won’t necessarily need those for daily packaging.
As for the greater economy, Jute relieves a lot of pressure from plastic and poly bags, which are made from petroleum. Petroleum resources deplete very fast and we have seen the recent increase in petroleum prices around the world.
This happens to be a very good alternative to decrease petroleum usage and control the insane price hike of petroleum & the overall inflation rate of the world economy.
Jute cultivation requires less land to grow, thus helping the farmers. Even one hectare of land produces a huge amount of jute fibre, and this less usage of land gives farmers the opportunity to produce more food crops, therefore, reducing food inflation.
Also, the Jute Industry is promoted by the local governments of Bangladesh and India which makes it easier for any company to make business with it.
Considering these things, it is economically more viable to choose jute fibre for packaging.
3. Recyclable & Reusable
A primary core benefit for jute is that it is recyclable and other options like plastic bags are not. Jute bags are reusable, recyclable, and 100% biodegradable. So, after its lifetime has ended, it will decompose on its own instead of staying in a landfill for a lifetime.
This also becomes a big economic benefit as recycling helps businesses use existing created fibres to create more packaging or other jute products which is both cost and environment friendly and thus reducing the cost of buying one.
Hence, the more we use jute bags, the cheaper it gets and the better the environment remains.
4. Sustainability & Durability
Jute fibres are one of the most consistent crops to be made across the year. It doesn’t need fertilizer to make, needs just a small bit of land to produce (comparatively to other crops.), and can be harvested every 6 months.
It is said, “Come rain or shine, your jute bag will be fine.” Its fibres are so strong that they can be used to make furniture (due to its woody core.) and still remain very easy to carry.
As jute fabrics are so strong and durable, they are great for packaging as it prevents damage to packaged products. On top of that, its ventilating and absorbent properties make it more usage worthy.
Basically, it’s fast, cheap and easy to produce year long and durable while being easy to carry.
5. Jute Fashion
Though not used for normal day to day packaging, jute bags come in many shapes and sizes with handcrafted materials and designs to make your packaging attractive.
While these do make the bags a bit costly, it will definitely be worth it as it can provide free marketing for your brand of business from a product that will be used over and over for its vast usefulness.
Final Thoughts
If we all really do care so much for the environment, then we really ought to shift to using jute bags frequently for all sorts of packaging.
Jute is not just the future, it has become the present and those who will not be still using it for both commercial and personal purposes will be missing out.
Sources:
https://www.bagzdepot.com/blog/benefits-of-jute-bags
https://www.eco-sacks.com/post/advantages-of-jute-bags
https://sufio.com/blog/6-beautiful-jute-packaging-ideas/
https://www.packingable.com/6-benefits-of-eco-friendly-jute-bags/
https://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1328785/FULLTEXT01.pdf
http://ashishbags.com/2021/01/05/how-jute-bags-are-helping-to-reform-economy-environment/
