UIRI’s handmade paper section utilizes the otherwise long wasted agricultural fibres such as banana stems, pineapple crowns, cotton rags, sisal, bagasse, papyrus, wheat straw and waste paper to make handmade paper.

Handmade paper is made using various vegetable fibres for instance sisal, papyrus, bagasse, cereal straw, maize and cotton stalks, pineapple leaves, cotton waste, elephant grass, banana fibre and bamboo.

The handmade paper products are entirely organic and therefore biodegradable. The production process is mechanical and does not involve use of any chemicals, resulting in environmentally friendly products, an ideal replacement for the environmentally damaging plastic bags.

Currently a number of products are being made out of handmade paper including among others craft paper, books, envelopes, cards, wall paper, note pads, and packaging bags and folders.

 

Objectives to meet its mission of developing the country’s paper industry

• To collect and experiment with various natural fibres in order to produce good quality paper that can be used for packaging.
• To offer training and technology transfer in handmade paper technology.

Services offered

• Training prospective entrepreneurs and students.
• Production of handmade paper and its products.
• Preparation of local additives for making quality handmade paper.
• Testing different parameters of machine / handmade paper like paper grammage, water absorbance and ink spot counting.
• Carrying out different experiments, research and development in paper making.

On-going activities

• Currently the division is involved in developing and experimenting handmade paper from maize ears, banana leaves, water hyacinth and wheat straw.
• R&D in using cassava starch produced at the UIRI food division department to experiment its effectiveness in paper formation in comparison with the maize/corn (imported starch).
• Market analysis/survey for handmade paper products in Uganda

Planned activities

• Training entrepreneurs in handmade paper making technology.
• Marketing handmade paper and its products
• Developing other samples of paper from more fibrous raw materials like bamboo, kenaf and wood sawdust/ shavings
• Standardizing local available additives for formation of quality handmade paper
• Technology transfer and commercialization of handmade paper technology
• Research and development of high quality handmade paper products