Many people have seen across social media and news outlets the devastating photos of marine life in correlation with garbage and pollution.
For years, environmentalists and animal lovers have urged people to recycle more and avoid using harmful products that may end up in the oceans–eventually choking, harming, and killing innocent animals such as seals, whales, and sea turtles. One of the biggest products that people advise against is the plastic rings that come on top of six-packs of soda and beer. These rings are often times the cause of deaths amongst marine animals, ending up around their necks and heads–choking them–or, even leading to consumption.
Now, a Florida-based brewery is teaming up with an environmentally-friendly company to release a solution to the devastation in terms of plastic rings. Saltwater Brewery, located in Delray Beach, teamed up with startup company E6PR to introduce rings made of wheat and barley–which can be used to feed sea turtles and other marine life, rather than choke them. And, they are also biodegradable–unlike the previous plastic rings many companies use.
The rings are currently being tested with several breweries–but have not been mass produced just yet for other companies. Seeing as studies indicate that over 80% of sea life consume plastic at one point in their life–it’s an incredibly sound investment for any company.