Pandas eat it, people use it, the earth grows it: bamboo is one of those miracle, too good to be true plants that - miraculously - isn't too good to be true. But, as you'll see on Alter Eco, while it is used for things as diverse as sushi maki rolling mats, medicine, kitchen steamers and furniture, and has an eco-friendly reputation, it remains little understood, a mystery if you will.
Bamboo is a member of the true grass family and is the fastest growing woody plant in the world. This fact helps contribute to its eco-friendly status or rather to our eco-consciousness in using it - when we cut it down, it grows back fast. It grows throughout the world in large areas, notably Asia but also Africa, the Southeast United States, and parts of South America. It is readily available and quickly regenerating; to use a word bamboo, or rather our use and consumption of it, is sustainable. Its sustainability is of course influenced by its processing, where it is processed and then distributed, and other materials used to make various bamboo products; however, all things being equal, bamboo is a "good" product to seek out and use.
Lightweight, durable, and parts of it edible, (not just by Pandas - humans have been known to enjoy bamboo shoots) with bamboo you get a lot for your buck - cash money and eco too. It's generally pale, natural wood color make it attractive in homes and kitchens, so classic items like bamboo steamers are as attractive as they are functional and long-lasting.
Bamboo is good for more than eating and cooking, though. It also makes good furniture and even flooring. "Extreme" uses of bamboo, like flooring, can present some practical and eco-minded problems however. As with many things, often the prices we pay do not reflect their "real" prices (think fast food hamburgers that cost under one dollar but depend on government subsidies and cheap, poorly regulated livestock care and slaughter). This can be the case with bamboo, especially when imported from countries like China that not only don't necessarily regulate the price of human labor but also have lax or no standards regarding its production - it can contain high levels of eco no-no formaldehyde. That said, it is possible to buy locally, or more locally, produced bamboo products and to find them with little or no formaldehyde.
While its relative cheapness, renewability and durability make it an excellent material for a variety of applications, it wouldn't be as popular if it weren't so attractive. You can even make a stunning house out of the stuff! It's aesthetic is clean, go-with-anything, and chic yet rustic. Because the raw material is so flexible, it can take on a variety of shapes and designs.
With a more than 5,000-year tradition of diverse use in China, bamboo is finally taking off in the rest of the world, including the U.S., as a viable if not incredibly desirable raw material for more and more applications. Whether in the kitchen, in the home, or in your mouth, bamboo is probably in your life already and there are a lot of reasons to make it even more of a presence. Just remember to try to buy it locally and look out for problematic chemicals like formaldehyde. Otherwise, have fun and get to know the endless wonders and possibilities of bamboo.
