An innovative solution to single-use plastic cutlery

Production has begun in Newhaven to create the innovative solution to single-use plastic cutlery: the KissCase.

Chailey-based Kate Gould, from KEG Catering Consultants, designed the product during lockdown to tackle the environmental damage caused by single-use plastic.

She said: "I started developing this special cutlery case to be fully leakproof and dishwasher safe allowing people to safely and cleanly carry their cutlery with them at all times."

KISS stands for Keep It Safe and Sustainable. The product includes a reusable case and a spork to carry on the go. Made from polypropylene plastic, it is durable and 100% recyclable.

People in England on average use 18 single-use plastic plates and 37 single-use plastic items of cutlery every year, according to government figures.

Even the more environmentally friendly option of bamboo cutlery Kate says are still not sustainable: "More often than not, it goes into general waste bags and off to landfill. It’s not really as sustainable as people are led to believe, not least because bamboo is grown and transported from tropical climates. It makes no sense to go to the effort of planting all these trees globally only to then cut them down and turn them into knives and forks."

Kate hopes that this reusable cutlery will become as common as reusable coffee cups and water bottles, and that more and more people will pick up the habit of using them.

She said: “I have invented something that I think is really special and very practical, but I also want this to be part of something bigger – to change people’s attitudes. We are damaging this planet and we all need to do something and start clawing back our impact.

"The KissCase represents a one-time purchase that, if used again and again, will have a massive environmental impact by reducing plastic waste. Also, you’ll be the only one using it, so you also know that it’s hygienically safe. The same cannot be said for cutlery that lurks in the back of staff room drawers or giant plastic pots of help-yourself disposable cutlery where everyone digs in!”