KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 31 — The war against plastic straws is spreading worldwide... and already gaining traction here with more and more cafes and restaurants abandoning their use.
But what about cling film? It's time for food operators to abandon the single-use plastic wrap and look into beeswax wraps.
Made from cotton and beeswax, the wrap is washable and reusable. Warmth from your hands will melt the wax, allowing you to cover small bowls or even cut ingredients. It cools down quickly to hold the seal.
Over in the US and UK, eco-conscious individuals have adopted it to store food. Even Skye Gyngell uses beeswax wraps at her London based restaurant Spring.
The Australian chef had banished single-use plastic after discovering her kitchen goes through 3,600 kilometres of cling film yearly!
On the local front, you have The Kain Projects which is producing beeswax wraps made by Rohingya refugees. Available in batik and other funky prints, the wraps also make lovely gifts for friends.
Set up in 2017 by Naziah Abas, 36, it's a social enterprise with a dual purpose. With each purchase, you'll reduce that pile of plastic waste and also help the marginalised and low income refugee community. Win!
Previously in the oil and gas industry for 10 years, Naziah was a volunteer at the Rohingya Refugee Education Centre to teach English to the children.
Inspired by the movement to banish plastic from our lives, she had attended a beeswax wrap workshop organised by co-founder of Zero Waste Malaysia, Khor Sue Yee. "The whole zero waste movement is picking up in Malaysia," she said.
Soon, friends were asking her to make wraps for them too.
A lightbulb moment made Naziah realise that maybe this venture could be used to help the refugees. "I thought why don't we make them there and I can pay a subsidy for the space."
Once she started, Naziah discovered the market is big on sustainability. Customers come from KL, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Ampang and Bangsar. She also supplies wraps to an eco start-up in Singapore. "It was really a craft project every Sunday for two hours and demand picked up hence I registered it as a sole proprietor," she said.
The process starts from cutting the fabric. They offer three sizes: small, medium and large. You can also custom make the sizes to fit your purpose.
Once the cloth is ready, it's placed between baking paper and beeswax is applied with coconut oil. As different fabrics absorb beeswax differently, they need to experiment with the ingredients.
Naziah explains that natural materials like thin cotton and linen work best. "The trick is getting the ratio right. Usually there must be a higher percentage of beeswax versus oil."
In The Kain Projects' case, they use coconut oil. She adds, "Coconut oil adds anti-bacterial properties and makes it soft."
The wraps can last around six months to a year, depending on how you handle them. Naziah adds, "That's a lot of plastic eliminated!" It's advised that no direct heat above 60 degrees Celsius is applied to the wraps, otherwise the beeswax will melt.
With the purchase of the beeswax wrap, Naziah also offers a useful brochure with guidelines on how to care for it. It's advised that the wraps are not used to cover raw meat or seafood since this may leave harmful bacteria on the wraps.
The Kain Projects also offers beeswax wrap DIY kits. It's an easy way to practise making them yourself. Naziah explained that they also offer rewaxing services for a small fee. She is also willing to teach people how to do it themselves.
The Kain Projects collaborated with Frangipani Bulk, which opened at The Linc, to produce a line of organic beeswax wraps. These wraps are composed of organic cotton dyed with vegetables.
Even the beeswax and coconut oil used are organically certified. These wraps last longer too.
Local cheesemaker Milkywheycheese is also changing the way she operates. Rather than using copious amounts of cling film to wrap her homemade cheese, she is gradually moving towards beeswax wraps.
Naziah tells us the reusable wraps keep mould away. Since the cheese wheels are enormous, Naziah custom makes the wraps accordingly to fit.
In addition, The Kain Projects also offers reusable tea bags. The cloth bags can be filled with loose tea leaves. For a more durable storage, they also have the Unpaper Bag made from waxed cotton canvas. Shaped like a brown bag and water resistant, it's good to bring anywhere to pack portions of food.
One of the highlights of The Kain Projects beeswax wraps is the use of our local batik. It all started during Raya as Naziah just wanted to cover the various lauk on the table. Customers love the batik prints and they sells faster than the others. "The batik is very attractive and very local. It was a very good choice and it is 'just by chance' as I used an old batik." Naziah uses batik terap sourced from Nysa Kapas, a producer in Terengganu. "She makes beautiful batik which she designs herself. It is hand blocked and hand dyed."
Naziah juggles her work with The Kain Projects with freelance jobs on the side and being a mother too. "It is penat doing this work but you meet a lot of nice people and it is kind of fulfilling to do something useful."
The Kain Projects
You can purchase the beeswax wraps at Bliss Zero Waste Store in Mingle Cafe, 55, Jalan Sultan, KL or check their Facebook and Instagram below to order the items.
Facebook: @thekainprojects
Instagram: @thekainprojects
