Those tiny plastic soy sauce fish may seem perfect for a splash of soy on your sushi, but they’ve quietly added up over the years. Since the 1950s, billions have been produced, and while each only lasts a few seconds on your plate, they stick around in the environment for centuries (no thanks!).

South Australia recently became the first state to ban these tiny plastic packets, showing just how seriously this issue is being taken, you can read more about that here. That’s also why it’s so exciting to see creative, planet-friendly alternatives stepping in to make sushi a little greener, lets dive in! 

Meet Holy Carp!

Seeing this problem up close, Sydney-based design studio Heliograf decided it was time for a change. Known for their award-winning Light Soy lamp, which uses recycles ocean-bound plastic and funds cleanups across Asia, Heliograf has been shining a light on plastic pollution “at the sauce” since 2020.

Now, they’ve teamed up with Vert Design Studio and leading sushi restaurants to create Holy Carp!, the world’s first fully home-compostable soy sauce dropper. This playful redesign keeps the classic fish shape, but does not hang around for decades... 

A Soy Fish That Actually Give Back

Holy Carp! is made from bagasse pulp, a plant-based by product of sugar cane that disappears in just weeks when composted at home. It’s completely free from plastics, PLA, and forever chemicals (PFAS), leaving nothing behind but nutrients for the soil.

Each dropper can hold up to 12mL of soy sauce for 48 hours, it's also slighty larger than traditional soy fish to match real customer usage. Internal fill lines indicate a half or full serve, and optional compostable stickers keep it secure for takeaway. Unlike factory-made plastics, Holy Carp! is filled fresh in-store, keeping the sauce fresher and giving restaurants flexibility to provide different flavours.

Innovation With Impact

Single-use packaging accounts for 40% of global plastic waste, and soy sauce fish are a surprisingly significant part of that story. So far Heliograf has removed over 30 tonnes of plastic from circulation thanks to their projects, the equivalent of 32 million soy fish. Holy Carp! continues that mission by tackling waste at its source, stopping plastic pollution before it reaches waterways and landfill. 

What makes Holy Carp! special isn’t just its eco credentials, it’s the way it blends creativity, function, and sustainability. For co-founder Angus Ware, the goal was never to remove joy from the sushi experience. “We wanted to show that we can still create moments of joy when being sustainable,” he says.

A Future Without Plastic Fish

Holy Carp! proves that small, thoughtful changes can ripple into huge environmental benefits. Each compostable dropper keeps plastic out of oceans, protects marine life, and encourages restaurants and consumers to rethink the way they use everyday packaging.

So next time you grab sushi, imagine a world where every sauce dropper returns to the earth instead of the ocean. With Holy Carp!, that vision is becoming reality, one plant-based, compostable fish at a time. 

I hope you're just as excited fro Holy Carp! as we are, GFZ's. For more Earth-loving stories, you can pick from so many others here!

With Love, 
Ellie xx