Transforming Food to Bandages - Connor Sullivan

 Transforming Food to Bandages - Connor Sullivan



    As we all know agriculture and food go hand in hand, we need farmers, land, and water, to create the food we eat everyday to help us survive on this planet. Some foods waste like bananas and apples can be good to compost and to give back to the environment, but what if I told you that there are scientist in Singapore that are creating antibacterial gel bandages out of food waste.

    When I read "Scientists in Singapore transform fruit leftovers into antibacterial bandages" an article by Travis Teo and Lee Ying Shan I became very curious to what was really going on. Scientists at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore are turning discarded durian husks into antibacterial gel bandages. The scientist extracts cellulose powder from the fruit's husks after they are sliced and freeze-dried, then mix it with glycerol. This mixture becomes a soft hydrogel, which is then cut into bandage strips. 
    
    In the article they said that people of Singapore eat about 12 million durians a year and there husks causes environmental pollution. I think that this is a great idea decreasing the waste that come from the husks and putting them to good use by being re used as bandages to help injured people. This article now brought up a question what else could scientist accomplish using common fruits that we eat everyday?

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