Providing eco-friendly packaging across Namibia
Barco Namibia: Making the environment smile
Barco Namibia offers recyclable, biodegradable and compostable packaging services.
At Barco Namibia, recyclable, biodegradable and compostable materials are the order of the day as they put into action what every establishment is working towards: being an eco-friendly company.Barco was founded in 2018 as a small-scale company focused on providing good quality and excellent service for restaurants and their packaging needs.
Six years down the line, the company is supplying lodges, as well as other industries, with biodegradable and compostable packaging as well as charcoal.
From coffee cups to disposable plates, cake boxes, paper products, takeaway packaging, bags, straws and pizza boxes, Barco Namibia is a one-stop shop – “Think take-away, think Barco.”
“In the times we are living in, resources are scarce and there’s also a lot of waste that needs to be managed,” said Barco managing partner Stephan Loubser.
“In Namibia, we have a lot of space, so people do not realise the impact that waste has. But if you’re not recycling your plastic, it just gets discarded and then sits until it decomposes, which could be hundreds of years,” he added.
Transforming waste
Loubser explained that the company has opted to focus on products that will biodegrade to nothing or on compostable products that can be used in a home composting system and will disappear completely in about 180 days. This is an arrangement that transforms waste into organic compost, which is needed and can be used as fertiliser for plants while simultaneously reducing landfill impact.
The company does not have a retail store and instead operates as an online shop. Loubser explained that wholesale clients are prioritised, along with restaurants and lodges, with a focus on maintaining a larger clientele that buys in bulk.
Barco Namibia will be exhibiting at this year’s Tourism Expo, taking place from 24 to 26 April.
Loubser pointed out the challenge faced by many hospitality establishments that are far away from towns and cities and have to transport their rubbish to the nearest town.
“We really want to offer compostable products that you can add to your compost paper products – sugar cane bagasse, paper straws. A whole package that you can give your clients. When they drive off, they’ve got a lunch pack, and they know that at the next lodge, it’s not going in the bin, it’s going into the compost pile,” said Loubser.