A zero-waste vacuum seal bag has launched into the hunting and fishing industry and goes by the name of Misty Lady.

Created by Salt Bags co-founders Reuben and Melissa Woods, the aim behind the product is to reduce the amount of plastic that goes into the ocean and environment. Designed and manufactured in New Zealand, the bags are made from certified AS5810 home compostable film and home compostable adhesives.

Melissa says after noticing there wasn’t a vacuum bag made from compostable film available, it was only right to offer their film technology to the recreational fishing community. Every element of the Misty Lady bags has been carefully considered and crafted to design out waste, from the material and packaging to the original mermaid character Misty.

“The film we use is certified home compostable, sustainably sourced and food-safe,

“Once the bag has been used, they will biodegrade back into the earth when placed in a warm home compost. Best of all, we make them here in New Zealand.”

Designing Misty Lady took time and research and it was important for the product to stand out on the retail shelf and appeal to both males and females.

“The Metallica style font, mermaid with bangs and die cut tail biofilm peeps were all ideas we had to encourage consumers to pick up of the product. Home compostable vacuum seal bags didn’t exist in fishing stores until Misty arrived, we needed to stand out and disrupt the shelf.”

Melissa says the product has already received great feedback from customers with many saying they had been waiting for a product like Misty lady for a long time.

“The spearfishing and fishing community really wanted a solution, they are conscious the impact they are having and are always looking for ways to reduce this.”

Misty Lady was recognised as a Sustainable Product Design finalist, up against leading New Zealand exporters like Ethique, UBCO, Hello Cup, Formway and Foodprint. The team were then awarded a gold accolade in the Australian GOOD Design Awards for communication packaging design.

“This reassured us that taking a thoughtful and purpose led approach to our product and packaging design was worth it. We worked extensively with the talented team at Woods Agency to refine each touchpoint of the design, from the Metallica styled typography through to the algae ink used for printing.”

The couple spend a lot of their time in the ocean and reducing the amount of plastic that enters the environment is the main driver behind everything they do. Looking ahead, the next six to 12 months will focus on the distribution of their products into new markets and new hands.

“We will also continue to help educate consumers around how to live with purpose and intent, we make it easy to make sustainable choices and own their impact.”