Since the onset of the pandemic, plastic waste has significantly increased — in part from people opting for restaurant takeout and delivery orders. Several sustainable solutions to plastic waste have been offered in recent years, but each solution has its own set of problems.

Asia Pulp & Paper, or APP, a pulp and paper manufacturing company based in Indonesia, has created a set of water-based packaging products that are both compostable and recyclable to better serve a wider variety of people and resources.

The company has partnered with Villa Chicken, a fast food chain based in Peru, and has succeeded in maintaining the quality of the food in delivery while still holding onto its sustainable assets. If this product continues to succeed, it may change how restaurants package food moving forward.

It is essential restaurant stakeholders continue to invest in sustainable alternatives to reverse the environmental damage exacerbated by the plastic industry.