Mama Bamboo: Benefits of Bamboo Nappies

Laura Crawford, Founder and CEO of Mama Bamboo, is supporting parents looking for more natural, organic options for their babies. Here she tells us why she chose organic bamboo for her new range of premium eco-nappies and wipes.

Did you know that your baby will use 6,000 nappies and over 20,000 wet wipes before they are potty trained? And unfortunately, over 90% of all brands are made using plastic and chemicals. These take masses of crude oil to produce and will sit in landfill for 500 years!

There is a better way; plant-based disposables. I created Mama Bamboo eco-nappies and wipes in 2018 having not found a truly eco-option which I was happy to use on my own children.

I wanted the convenience and high performance of a disposable, but I didn’t want to put my baby in plastic and chemicals. Not only was I highly concerned about the environmental impact, but I did not want my baby to suffer nappy rash as a consequence of being wrapped up in polyethylene and polypropylene 24 hours a day.

I developed the UK’s first 100% bamboo top and bottom cover nappy with a fully compostable liner. Unlike several other nappy brands we do not use any oil-based plastic in our covers or liners. We even use fully compostable plant based packaging for our nappies, and our wipes are 100% bamboo fibre.

Bamboo is an incredible sustainable resource; it grows organically without the use of pesticides, fertilizers or false irrigation and it grows immensely fast. Moso Bamboo holds the world record for growth – 91cm in a single day! We ensure that all our bamboo is grown and harvested sustainably by only choosing FSC certified bamboo from the Moso region.

Bamboo fibre is also very absorbent, breathable, temperature regulating, naturally antibacterial and very very soft; absolutely perfect for babies delicate skin. It helps to reduce the chance of nasty nappy rash and keeps babies’ comfortable and dry for longer. Feedback from our clients has been amazing. The difference the bamboo makes to babies’ skin is noticeable within just a couple of days.

You might have seen bamboo on sale in expensive sportswear shops or as bamboo socks recently. It is for these very health benefits that it is being used for adults’ luxury items. I wanted to bring that luxury and health impact to babies’ tiny bottoms.

One other little-known fact about bamboo is that it is a 2.4x more effective carbon sink than any other woody plant; meaning by planting bamboo forests we can reduce the overall carbon impact of global warming more than if we planted anything else. Mama Bamboo have teamed up with The Ugandan Bamboo Village Programme to offset our carbon freighting emissions by planting bamboo forests. This allows us to achieve our carbon neutral goal, helps save the planet and creates jobs and livelihoods for local people.

A bit more about Mama Bamboo

In addition to the positive impact the products themselves have on the planet, we as a business have chosen to join a growing movement of ethical businesses worldwide who use “Business as a Force for Good”. In 2020, Mama Bamboo became the only UK nappy brand to be B-Corp certified and were awarded the “Best for the World” award in the Environment category in 2021. In addition to our product development work, we are working with UCL and Made of Waste to develop the blueprints for a fully circular composting model for all bioplastic and plant based materials in the UK.For more information please visit www.mamabamboo.com