Ghost nets are abandoned fishing nets that float around in the sea or get caught on wrecks and coral reefs. According to the WWF, they account for about one third of the global plastic waste in the oceans. Freeing the world's oceans from these ghost nets is the mission of two advertising merchants from Hamburg, according to a report in the FAZ. The article says that Madeleine von Hohenthal and Benjamin Wenke developed their business idea for Bracenet when they kept coming across the discarded fishing nets while diving in Zanzibar in 2015: To rid the seas of the ghost nets and create something new from them. In the beginning, they themselves made bracelets and more from it. Today, a team of 25 people works at Bracenet GmbH and offers other products besides bracelets, such as rings or dog leashes. Basically, the founding couple is still concerned with getting as many ghost nets as possible out of the sea, writes the FAZ. To do this, they work closely with the partner organisations Healthy Seas and Ghost Diving from the Netherlands, whose divers provide the necessary supplies in the North Sea, in the Mediterranean or off the coast of New Zealand. The award-winning company Bracenet has processed more than five tonnes since it was founded. "Making the oceans more plastic-free is our vision. And even if that is still a long way off, we are already making a relevant contribution," the FAZ quotes Benjamin Wenke.

Sources:

• FAZ (11/25/2021)
• Photo: © Bracenet