the Verterra formula:
dead leaves + steam + pressure = plate!
Verterra, a new NYC based company is turning fallen leaves into dinnerware. Instead of using paper or plastic, which needs to be recycled, Verterra is serving up a menu of compostable dinne
rware.
Who: Michael Dwork, a Columbia student at the time was in India for a summer internship. He came across a woman pressing leaves which had been soaked in water into a shape which to him, looked like a plate. On further investigation, he realized that she was making plates and serving the food she had prepared at her roadside stall on these fresh plates. It was at that moment that Verterra was birthed.
What: Chemical-free, Non-toxic, Biodegradable, Sustainable, Renewable, Microwave-oven and refrigerator-safe, Reusable, Compostable. This is how Michael’s website describes the product – a pretty good summary, we think!
More: The dinnerware is produced in Southeast Asia, by Verterra’s own employees (read – not outsourced to sweatshop) who are provided access to health care, receive fair wages and safe working conditions. The website describes the product manufacture as follows:
“From start to finish, the impact we make on the earth is our top priority. We start by collecting fallen leaves from plantations without cutting down any trees. Normally, these leaves would be burned on the side of the road. Instead, they are brought to our factory, sprayed with high pressure water, steamed and UV sterilized. We recapture over 80% of the water we use. No chemicals, lacquers, glues, bonding agents or anything toxic are ever used. The entire process uses only a fraction of the energy used in recycling.”
The dinnerware, which is reusable, can be used in the microwave and regular oven (up to 350’f) and does not make the food taste funny at all.
Verterra is another superb example of social entrepreneurship: They are bringing to market a very desirable product, while at the same time reducing waste, energy use during recycling and providing fair paying jobs for many people in poorer parts of the world.
Social Venturing 
