October 08, 2018
Flax fresh take on supermarket experience
An Ōtautahi supermarket is trialling the use of flax kete for customers to use in its fruit and vegetable section instead of plastic or metal baskets.
Kai Baskets co-ordinator Lana Hart says the kete in Raeward Fresh in the Christchurch suburb of Harewood are durable, they can easily be repaired, and they can be disinfected by boiling
At the end of their life they can be returned to the earth.
She says the idea came from frustration at the lack of sustainable options.
"When you look around at what Māori used over the centuries it made sense to go to flax, to repurpose the local plant Māori have used for years and so looking back to our past to how we can move forward in the future so we can stop putting loads of rubbish in our landfills and our oceans," Ms Hart says.
The kete were woven by local iwi for a koha, but the hope is as the scheme grows the weavers can be paid a living wage.
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