Precious Plastic Karatsu

🌐 日本語版（Precious Plastic 唐津）はこちら / Read this page in Japanese

Japan's hub for community-based plastic upcycling

Precious Plastic Karatsu, run by the non-profit Karatsu Farm & Food, is one of Japan's most experienced community plastic-upcycling operations — and a hub others turn to when they want to start their own. We recover ocean plastic and waste bottle caps from the coasts of Karatsu, in Kyushu, and turn 100% of it into one-of-a-kind products, while sharing the open-source Precious Plastic model across Japan and beyond.

We see ourselves as a gateway for Precious Plastic in Japan: a place where the global open-source movement meets local practice, and where new groups can learn what actually works on the ground.

Why teams around the world come to us

Our track record is the reason international programs and communities find us, rather than the other way around:

• More than 50 Precious Plastic workshops delivered across Kyushu
• Helped launch a new site on Okinoerabu Island — three visits to build machines, run workshops, and share open-source know-how
• Translated core Precious Plastic resources into Japanese, lowering the barrier for groups across the country
• We build and quote injection-molding machines, not just operate them
• Connected internationally, including Precious Plastic France and the global network
• Exhibited at EXPO 2025 Osaka in the Blue Ocean Dome ocean pavilion
• Planning a new site in Tsushima
• Run upcycling workshops with internationally recognized brands such as MUJI and UNIQLO (a SPOGOMI clean-up collaboration)

This is exactly the kind of experience that led ChangeX (Ireland) to engage us as a mentor and expert to help launch new Precious Plastic groups in Japan. When organizations want a partner who has actually started sites — not just talked about them — they come to Karatsu.

Start a Precious Plastic group in Japan — we mentor

Thinking of starting a Precious Plastic group — as a community, school, company or local government? We provide hands-on mentoring and startup support: machine building and quoting, workshop design, open-source guidance, and the practical lessons we've learned launching sites across Kyushu and the islands. If you're a foundation, fund or program looking for a Japan-based expert to support new groups, we'd love to talk.

From ocean plastic to products — how it works

Everything we make is 100% recovered plastic, designed to be collected and remade again — a true circular loop, not a one-off. The process has four steps:

• Collect & sort — beach cleanups and community collection boxes; sorted by polymer (HDPE/PP) and colour
• Shred — into remouldable flakes on open-source Precious Plastic machines
• Mould — by injection or compression; the flakes melt together into a marble pattern that is different every time
• Finish — trimmed and polished into the final product

What we make

Each piece is one of a kind, because the marble pattern can never be repeated exactly:

• The Whale — a recycled-plastic whale keychain that carries a biodiversity message
• Coasters — custom designs for brands and events
• Flower pots — upcycled planters that bring the circular idea into daily life
• RE:C sunglasses — one-of-a-kind frames from recycled caps
• Brand Keyring — custom logo keyrings for companies, teams and local governments
• Beads bracelets — a youth-led project with Karatsu Minami High School and Precious Plastic Waseda

For companies — bulk & novelty orders (B2B)

For organizations, our products are available as bulk / novelty orders — corporate CSR gifts, conference mementos and event giveaways — including custom Brand Keyrings and coasters, and hands-on molding workshops that double as sustainability training. Because each piece is made to order in small-batch production, we work on a quote basis (quantity, logo/design, timeline). We don't sell single items by international mail order.

To request a quote, choose "Bulk / novelty order (B2B)" on our contact form.

Part of Japan's Precious Plastic network

We work within — and help grow — the Precious Plastic Japan network: small, local recycling sites sharing the open-source model that began in the Netherlands. Partners include Precious Plastic Waseda (Waseda University), MEISEI and Mutsumi, among others. We collaborate with Karatsu Minami High School on youth projects, and with Patagonia Japan on ocean-plastic field work — and we extend the work into art and sustainable tourism, including marine-plastic art on Tsushima.

Work with us

Whether you'd like to start a group, collaborate as a fund or community, commission a bulk order, or simply learn more, we'd be glad to hear from you. We read and write English well; for calls, an interpreter helps, so tell us your preferred language.

Related

▶ Karatsu SDGs — more on our Precious Plastic work in Japan
▶ Precious Plastic (global open-source project)
▶ Nature Positive — Saga's first OECM site
▶ Regenerative tourism & corporate study visits
▶ 日本語版：Precious Plastic 唐津（プロダクト一覧つき）