Context: The project ‘Marine litter and microplastics: promoting the environmentally sound management of plastic waste and achieving the prevention and minimization of the generation of plastic waste’ (BRS-Norad-1), financed by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), seeks to prevent and significantly reduce marine litter and microplastics by strengthening capacity in Ghana.

It is being implemented by the Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions (BRS Secretariat) in close collaboration with Ghana’s Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology & Innovation (MESTI) and the Basel Convention Coordinating Centre for Training and Technology Transfer for the African Region, Nigeria (BCCC Nigeria). BCCC-Nigeria is supporting the implementation of a series of pilots in Ghana under this project. In this context, the sale of edible/compostable packaging will be tested in various restaurants/shops in Ghana. An entity was needed to produce and ship the edible and compostable packaging and provide related advisory services during the implementation of the pilot. 

A U.K based sustainable packaging start-up Notpla was selected to carry out the pilot. 

The two plastic-free packaging solutions being tested are:

• an edible water sachet called ‘Ooho’ for hydration on the go, which seeks to reduce the widespread use of plastic sachets; and
• a takeaway food container that has many of the same grease and water-resistant qualities as traditional coatings.

These products will be offered at 5 canteens and shops on the University of Ghana Campus.

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