How areca leaf plates are made
Areca leaf plates are made from areca palm leaf sheaths that have fallen naturally. Farmers in Karnataka collect the sheaths, which are washed in plain water and dried in the sun. Each sheath is then heat-pressed in a mould, trimmed, inspected and packed for export. No glue, wax or coating is added at any step.
Collect
Areca palms shed their leaf sheaths on their own. Farmers in Karnataka gather the sheaths from the ground once they have fallen. Nothing is cut from the tree, and no tree is felled for your order.
For you: A plate that needs no explaining: no trees cut, and a by-product of areca nut farming turned into income for the farm.
Clean
The collected sheaths are soaked and washed in plain water, then dried in the sun until they are ready to press. Nothing is added to the leaf at this stage, or at any later one.
For you: A plain, natural surface. What you see on the plate is the leaf itself.
Press
Each sheath is heat-pressed into shape in a mould. Heat and pressure alone hold the form — no glue, wax or coating. The pressed leaf is heat resistant up to 100 °C and resists light sauces and oil.
For you: Plates that stay rigid under a full meal, in 20 shapes from 4-inch dessert plates to 11-inch meze platters.
Check and pack
Pieces are trimmed, inspected one by one and packed in cartons sized for export shipping.
For you: Every piece has been looked at before it is packed, so you are not sorting stock when the carton arrives.
Why is every areca leaf plate slightly different?
Each plate is pressed from a real leaf sheath, so grain and shade vary from piece to piece. That is the leaf, not a flaw, and it is why a table of areca plates looks natural rather than uniform.
What happens after the meal?
Because the plate is a single natural material, it can go to a compost heap whole. Rootsbay's specification puts areca leaf tableware at home compostable within 60–90 days after use.
See what we make
Twenty shapes, all from the same areca leaf. Browse the range, then tell us what you need.