“The Plectranthus barbatus plant has provided Mutembei with a cost-effective alternative to purchasing toilet paper in Kenya. Like many commodities, the price of toilet paper has risen across Africa, largely due to the high cost of imported raw materials, such as wood pulp, which is essential for the production of toilet roll. Raw material costs now make up 75-80% of the final cost of tissue products in Kenya, according to the Kenya Association of Manufacturers.
Toilet paper made from virgin wood pulp currently dominates the global industry. “Typical toilet paper is made of 70-80% short fibre hardwood and 20-30% long fibre hardwood,” says Ronalds Gonzalez, a professor in the Department of Forest Biomaterials at North Carolina State University.
According to research by the environmental impact consultancy Edge, roughly one million trees are cut down worldwide each year to make toilet paper.
The pulp and paper industry is the world’s largest consumer of virgin wood, using roughly 35% of harvested trees for paper production. This is driving deforestation, biodiversity loss, soil erosion, species extinction and widespread ecosystem disruption according to the latest Ethical Consumer report on ethical toilet paper.”
The people growing their own toilet paper – BBC
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20241203-the-people-growing-their-own-sustainable-toilet-paper-plant
Meet the Toilet Paper Plant: Plectranthus Barbatus / Blue Spur Flower / Boldo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SN8uLsAAbMU
How to Plant and Care for the Toilet Paper Plant (Plectranthus barbatus)
https://www.robingreenfield.org/bluespur/