Flower Matter

Flower Matter

Flower Matter

https://vimeo.com/535204782

Flower Matter is an ongoing research of ways to sustainably valorise flower waste. The project aims to provide a solution to cut this waste stream by turning flower waste into environmentally responsible materials. By integrating material production into the industry, we can divert flower waste from landfills, direct recyclable wastes that come with flowers into their proper recycling processes, offer alternatives for unsustainable materials and enable circularity in the industry.

While flowers are beautiful, they have an incredibly short lifetime. Millions of flowers are planted, selected, cut, and transported across the world daily, ready to become precious gifts for loved ones or exquisite decorations before ending their long journey in landfills.

Various sources say 40% is the percentage of flowers grown commercially that are thrown away before they reach consumers' hands. 
As a case study, in Bangkok, Thailand, where the excessive use of flowers is rooted deeply into the way of life, lies Pak Klong Talat, a flower market with over 500 vendors that runs twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. The market generates roughly one cubic meter of flower waste per shop per week, or approximately over 10 tons of waste flower daily. These discarded flowers are thrown away with their packaging intact, therefore they are not considered organic and can only end up in landfills as mixed wastes or being incinerated. 


What if we can extend the life of these discarded flowers?
What if we can utilise them in bio-based materials?

I see the potential to cut down this waste stream by turning flower waste into environmentally responsible materials through research and hands-on material development. For the past two years, Flower Matter has been developed in the lab of Aalto University, Finland. First, as my research project, then as my Master’s thesis. 

Currently, Flower Matter results in a collection of bio-based materials comprise of

1.Flower Paper: made of 100% pulp from various flower stems and leaves. The material contains only fibre from discarded flowers, with no additives. The paper can be used for bouquet wrapping, packaging uses or artistic purposes.

2. Bio-(floral) Foam: made of 100% fibre from flower stem (mainly carnation and iris). The material aims to simulate and act as an alternative for phenol-formaldehyde foam (floral foam) with its properties of water-absorbent, ability to hold flowers, biodegradable, no oil-based ingredient or additive, 100% flower, hence microplastic-free.

3. Flaux (/floʊ/): is a nonwoven-textile/ flexible sheet/ leather-like material. The material contains flower petals (mainly rose and carnation) as the main ingredient and colour agent for the material. Therefore, no artificial colourant is needed. The material also contains no oil-based ingredient or additive. Flaux can be made into all kinds of lifestyle products e.g. bags, wallets, shoes etc. 

All materials are designed with the heart of biodegradability and the possibility to recycle. Each flower species require a slightly different treatment but almost every species can be made into materials. Rotten and mouldy parts are made into compost.

Flower Matter could be implemented in the cut flower industry as a flower upcycling hub. It will not only convert the waste into valuable materials but also enable circularity in the industry, contribute to the community where it is located by supporting local businesses in buying their surplus flowers, creating career opportunities and feed locally-produced, eco-friendly materials back into the market. More importantly, the hub encourages the community to recycle recyclable wastes such as plastic packaging by separating inorganic matters out of the flower waste in the sorting process.

Implementing the material production of Flower Matter can divert nearly 100% of flower waste from landfills.

The concept of Flower Matter as an ‘upcycling hub’ is adaptable to any place with flower waste. As flowers already generate a large amount of carbon footprint during the growing and the import, I would like to endorse the locally-produced aspect of the materials and the hub as much as possible. Thus, instead of scaling up the size of the production, I am more interested in scaling up the numbers of locations that would benefit from Flower Matter.

The first potential places to implement the hubs are Bangkok Flower Market, Thailand where the volume of the waste is significant and problematic, Finland where the research is being done, and the Netherlands where the largest portion of flower in the industry is being traded. In a bigger picture, once the first Flower hub is established, it can be used as the blueprint for prospective flower upcycling hubs worldwide.

Flower Matter was first exhibited as a solo exhibition in March 2021 at Bangkok Flower to reach out to its stakeholders for the Bangkok hub, then in September 2021 as a part of the Designs for a Cooler Planet, Helsinki Design Week at Espoo, Finland. Both exhibitions received excellent feedback from the visitors. The concept of the project gains interest from a significant number of flower wholesalers and flower-related businesses. Inquires on Flower Matter materials have been received from presses and potential users. 

Flower matter will be exhibiting in October 2021 at Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, Netherlands. The project is looking to implement the initiative in the industry within 2022.

Until now, Flower Matter has been in collaboration with FloweRescue (Finland), Rose Flower Bangkok (Thailand), and Flowers In The Mist (Thailand) in upcycling their flower waste.