Slightly flavored with tea! 1/1 ZAKUPLA-kun," a Gunpla made with "Oi Ocha" tea husks, will be on sale at the event from October 6, 2012.

BANDAI SPRITS, in cooperation with Ito En, announced the commercialization of the first plastic model of the Gundam series made of resin upcycled from tea leaves discharged in the production process of green tea beverages. The product, "1/1 ZAKUPURAKUN," will go on sale online at an event to be held on October 6, 2023 (Friday).

Each "1/1 Zakupura-kun" plastic model has a subtle tea aroma and is made from the same amount of tea husks used to produce approximately two 600ml PET bottles of "Oi Ocha Green Tea.
By using more than 20% tea-shell resin for the head, arms, and legs, the ratio of petroleum-derived plastics has been reduced.

This product will be available online at the "GUNDAM NEXT FUTURE -EAST/WEST/DIGITAL-" event to be held from October 6, 2023 (Friday).

■Development History (*Original Text)

BANDAI SPIRITS has been working on the use of new materials to replace petroleum-derived plastics in some of its plastic model products. To date, BANDAI SPIRITS has developed and released LIMEX, a new material derived from limestone, and eggshell plastic, together with partner companies, in order to make these resins applicable to plastic models.
Meanwhile, ITO EN, which is collaborating on this product, established an initiative in 2001 to upcycle tea leaves discharged in the production process of green tea beverages such as "Oi Ocha" through its proprietary "tea leaves recycling system" technology. As sales of green tea beverages expand, the amount of tea leaves discharged in the manufacturing process has been increasing year by year (approximately 58,000 tons in fiscal 2022).
ITO EN has been promoting R&D to effectively utilize tea leaves and other beverage residues in industrial products, etc., and has so far developed about 100 types of upcycled products containing tea leaves.
The 1/1 ZAKUPLA-KUN was developed with the support of ITO EN, which also promotes sustainable activities, in response to BANDAI SPIRITS' efforts to reduce the amount of petroleum-based plastics used and CO2 emissions.

Product Information
1/1 ZAKUPLA-kun
Manufacturer: BANDAI SPRITS
Release date: October 6, 2023
Price: 880 yen (tax included)
Size: Approximately 80mm in height
*Because the tea husk is a natural product, the aroma will lessen with storage conditions and over time.
*It may be sold at events and directly managed stores such as THE GUNDAM BASE at a later date.

© Sotsu, Sunrise