Chinese students use disposable leaves instead of plastic for disposable dishes

September 03, 2022

HC Plastics News: According to the US media, Feng Yalun, a student from Wuhan, is a partner of the company called LeavesPlatesCompany. The company imports disposable plates made from deciduous leaves from India and Nepal. The price of a leaf plate is the same as that of a traditional plastic plate, but in contrast, the leaf plate can be completely recycled and biodegraded. The company imports these plates from India and Nepal and sells them in the United States. Feng Yalun is responsible for marketing and mining potential investors.

According to the US "New York Times" website reported on August 23, "This is an identity that connects me as a Chinese," Feng Yalun said. "Because China produces one-third of the world's plastics, I also hope to pass the leaves. The way the plate brings a revolution that changes China’s current situation and consumption habits."

Want to bring change to society

According to the report, Feng Yalun’s story represents the trend of a new generation of international student entrepreneurs. Their entrepreneurship not only considers money, but also wants to bring certain changes to the society. Moreover, China's development and potential have made many people no longer only consider staying abroad. "Many people are willing to return to China, especially those from Beishang and Jiangsu and Zhejiang. The previous generation (10 years ago) is more likely to stay in the United States."

Although he has already transferred to study abroad, Feng Yalun has carefully taken care of his contacts with domestic students and actively participated in various activities held by domestic universities, such as the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Summit of Peking University in May this year.

According to the report, for foreign businessmen who want to open the Chinese market, ambitious Chinese students have become attractive partners. Their family conditions and resources are also relatively rich. Previously, undergraduate international students were not too many, and many people rely on scholarships to study abroad, but now most of them go abroad at their own expense. "They are working very hard and are willing to bring the advanced technology and ideas of the United States back to China. They also have such resource conditions," Feng Yalun said.

His leaf plate company was founded in the spring of 2016 by Prakash Bakigane. Baki Gaien is from Nepal and is now a junior junior at New York University of Science and Technology studying mechanical engineering. Feng Yalun joined the company in the fall of 2016, but brought the company's biggest customer to date, Vanderbilt University.

"He told me for the first time that this was the time for dinner this spring," said Eric Kbostein, vice president of Vanderbilt University. "He shared the idea of a leaf plate with me at the time. He was not selling his products," Mr. Kbostein stressed. "I think this idea is very good. Maybe we can move it to our campus."