Why Aren’t We All Buying Products made of Bamboo

Ok, so Bamboo PC’s were just gimmicks. A laptop version of the bamboo PC was released at the Hanover computer fair last March. The laptop features a laminated bamboo casing which surrounds a rather basic computer, that alone won’t make much of a dent in the amount of plastics around the world.

Despite not having any major eco benefits to the bamboo computers, they did give a good demonstration of what can be done with a material that versatile.

Bamboo must be the only raw material that can be used as food, clothing and building materials. Even Edison used bamboo in one of his early lightbulb designs. Its strength and low price tag makes it a great material for building, particularly in parts of Asia where it’s used as scaffolding. The fibres within bamboo poles have both high tension strength, as well as high compression strength. It’s compressive strength works out around twice that of concrete, bamboo also has the same tensile strength to weight ratio as steel. And now there’s a bamboo laptop!

Bamboo ticks lots of boxes for anyone buying eco-friendly home furnishings. For a start, bamboo is an extremely sustainable material. Some bamboo species are able to grow more than one metre every day. Local people can cut down as much as they need for carving, weaving, sawing or splitting and still have as big a forest at the end of the year as they had at the start. As for the global warming problem, because bamboo is a plant, all products made out of the sustainable material contains a large amount of atmospheric carbon. The plastic equivalent of a bamboo product is worse for the environment as it actually adds to the levels of carbon in the atmosphere!

Another point; due to bamboo being a natural material, it has a number of variations in quality, size and appearance, all of these differences make it difficult to work with as part of a mass production line. What this means is that you can be almost positive that a skilled craftsman has built the bamboo product you buy. If you choose to buy from a reputable source, you’ll also have the peace of mind that the craftsman has earned a fair wage from their work and not been exploited. The last thing is that you can be sure that your purchased product won’t have accumulated any air miles since it’s creation.

With such strong eco credentials, it’s amazing that bamboo products are so beautiful. Just picture a hand crafted bamboo box, layered 15 times with natural shellac. Both stylish and natural. In the last few days, I picked up a beautifully hand-crafted bamboo knife block and now I’m considering buying more bamboo kitchen accessories such as fruit bowls. Stylish and ethical. Win.