Description
Lotka is made in the highlands of Nepal by rural craftspeople. The Daphne bush is farmed and harvested from 3-4 year old plants that are cut down and stripped of their bark to become the raw material from which the sheets are formed. The plant is not destroyed when cut down, it regenerates from the root. The cane like stick, once it’s bark is removed is dried and used to heat the villagers homes and to provide cooking fuel for meals and also for the production of the paper. All of the water used in the paper production is re-claimed and re-used. The bark is beaten by hand and boiled to break it down to a pulp (where it is mixed in with recycled pulp and paper scrap collected from the card and envelope manufacturing process) that is then pored into screens to form the sheets. The sheets are then dried in the sun. The whole process is not only earth friendly but also provides a large community with a healthy enterprise. All of our lotka paper is at least 50% recycled fiber content
