Marie Bee Bloom Biodegradable Face Mask Sprouts Flowers

Since the beginning of 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic changed our lives, we have gotten used to the sight of littered surgical masks. These masks can be seen on the streets, buried in garbage bags, hanging from tree branches, or tangled up in some bushes.

Face masks are now a regular part of our lives and will most likely remain so for months, if not years. However, while they are critical in preventing the spread of Covid-19, they are not good for the planet or the oceans.

To reduce face mask littering that leads to increased micro-pollution levels, Netherlands-based graphic designer Marianne de Groot-Pons came up with Marie Bee Bloom disposable mask – an initiative of Dutch design firm Pons Ontwerp.

Face masks that turn into flowers

The Dutch company creates face masks using rice paper in their Dutch-sheltered workshop. These face masks are further filled with a mixture of Dutch meadow flower seeds. As these face masks by Marie Bee Bloom are biodegradable, users can bury them in the ground after use.

Once buried in-ground, the seeds enveloped within each mask will be able to sprout and turn into a beautiful flower. With these flower-sprouting face masks, De Groot-Pons hopes to encourage people to do their bit to cultivate the earth. Meanwhile, bees will also get enough nourishment from the blooms.

Mask is 100% sustainable

The Dutch designer has created a biodegradable mask under the brand Marie Be Bloom. As plastic face masks mostly ends its life in the street or waste, Marie Be Bloom Masks on the other hand, can be buried (read planted) in your yard. The face masks will grow into beautiful flower plants.

All raw materials used in creating this mask are sustainable and biodegradable – from adhesive to the stamped logo. The glue that holds the mask’s cords is made from starch collected from potatoes.

The woolen cords of the Marie Bee Bloom disposable face masks are made using pure sheep wool that’s easy to tighten or loosen up around the ear, using an adjusting piece that’s taken from reclaimed vegetable egg cartons.

According to De Groot-Pons, she has not tested these masks for certain protection factors. But all these masks are quite safe to use, just like your regular homemade cloth face masks.

The designers created the product as an alternative to disposable personal protective equipment (PPE) made from plastics, which takes up to 450 years to biodegrade and breaks down into microplastics ingested by fish, other marine life and ultimately humans.

"Marie Bee Bloom is about 'blooming the world', so the intention is really to plant the mask," the brand's founder Marianne de Groot-Pons told Dezeen. "Of course it decomposes but I don't want to encourage people to throw the masks away."

The seed mix contains seven different Dutch wildflowers, such as daisies, petunias, cornflowers and delicate baby's breath.

These seeds are fixed in place using a homemade adhesive of potato starch and water, wedged between two sheets of rice paper.

Rather than just mitigating this pollution, de Groot-Pons hopes to actively regenerate the natural environment by cultivating flowers beloved by bees and other pollinators.

However, with Marie Bee Bloom disposable face masks, people could not just protect themselves from the virus, but also preserve the earth and the bees.

"I was already familiar with growth paper, a paper that contains seeds but is often thick and used for cards or invitations," said the designer. "The variant I was looking for had to be thin so that it could be folded and carried well, which I found in rice paper."

According to de Groot-Pons, the seeded paper offer as much protection as other homemade masks.

The logo printed on the outside is rendered in biodegradable ink, which she claims contains no harmful chemicals, while the ear loops are made from spun sheep's wool.

De Groot-Pons hopes to expand the brand internationally with seeds that are appropriate and beneficial to the various local ecosystems.

"Due to the seeds we use currently, we can only ship the Marie Bee Bloom masks in Europe" De Groot-Pons explained.

"We are looking into how we can set up local productions in other countries and continents, of course using native seeds." -- De Groot-Pons

How effective is Marianne’s Bee Bloom biodegradable face mask?

Marianne’s mask has not yet been tested for effectiveness against the COVID-19 virus. As reported by the official website, the Bee Bloom biodegradable face masks offer as much protection as fabric masks.

What seeds are in Bee Bloom disposable face mask?

The mask contains Dutch meadow mix, asters, cornflower, coreopsis, gilia, gypsophila, dill seeds.