Bio degradable diapers from Australian-based Sri Lankan entrepreneur

Having developed the first ever ‘bio-degradable diaper’ in her garage with two other people way back in 1995, Charishma Seneviratne, a fibre technologist by profession, has come a long way to listing her Australian based company in the Australian Stock Exchange (ASE) and expanding to Sri Lanka.

“At nineteen, I was a dressmaker and went on to become a dress designer ending up as the official designer for the Miss Sri Lanka contest in 1994, before I left for Australia,” Seneviratne reminisces, adding that she took up a postgraduate degree in Curtin University in Australia.

Heavily into textiles, Ms Seneviratne was always interested in doing different things and experimenting. Wanting to further her knowledge in the textile field she decided to complete her Masters degree in fibre technology also from Curtin and is presently reading for her doctorate in the same field.

“I was awarded a scholarship from Curtin to Groginedgen University in Netherlands for four months to further my knowledge,” she said, adding that she has focused on research and development (R&D) on disposable materials for four years.
Seneviratne went on to establish her company, SeNevens International Limited with her husband Thilak Seneviratne together with several other foreign investors.

She is actively looking at establishing a company in Sri Lanka to market her latest invention in diapers. “My next nappy will be for the Asian market and I am looking at Sri Lanka to be a hub for my Asian Market,” she said, adding that the company will be up, and running in two years. “Within the next six months the company will be listed on the ASE which will further the expansion,” she added.

Presently SeNevens International exports to the United Kingdom and New Zealand.

“The nappy market is an ever increasing market. Each child wears about 6000 to 8000 nappies before they are potty trained. In Sri Lanka it is a 20 million market, but what I will focus is the price factor to make it affordable,” Seneviratne explained.

She is presently talking with Marie de Classique garment manufacturing owners, Marie and Indra de Silva for her Sri Lankan operation.

Her first international award the World Quality Commitment Goldstar Award in 2002 got her recognised in Australia, when she was awarded the Australian citizenship on a special category of distinguished talent where only sportsmen and authors are awarded. Western Australia also appointed her the ‘Science Ambassador’ for that territory.

She went on to secure the Gold Crown Award from UK last year and was nominated for the Australian of the Year 2007 and also the International Business Awards.

Her company holds the patents for her initial product and her other developments for the innovations of the same product.

Seneviratne who has put her 26-years of experience in fibre construction to use in the development of Safeties Nature Nappy, said that traditional disposable nappies have dramatic consequences for the environment. They can take up to 500 years to biodegrade and are the third most common item found in landfill. “Present conventional nappies takes over 500 years to bio-degrade. Our nappies called the Safeties Nature nappies takes six to eight months without any toxins to landfill,” she explains, adding that these nappies are developed through a felted process and are not woven or knitted.

She said that the product has been scientifically tested and in normal conditions break down completely in less than six months. However, due to the arid conditions of landfill, it is estimated that Safeties will completely break down in these dryer conditions within six to eight months. Each nappy has its own 100 percent biodegradable refuse bag, which assists in the biodegrading process.

Seneviratne said that the product also has significant health benefits. Unlike conventional brands that use chemicals to draw moisture away from babies’ delicate bodies, the nappy uses a grafted polymer to natural starch technology that ensures liquid is naturally and quickly drawn away from the skin, thereby reducing the risk of nappy rash and more serious conditions that result from traditional absorption methods.

She has been interviewed on several Australian television and radio programmes and has had over 35 articles written about her in local, national and international publications.

Seneviratne appeared on the acclaimed Australian series the ABC New Inventors programme and obtained 76 percent of the peoples’ choice vote.