The spherical packets are made from seaweed and produced by Britain’s Skipping Rocks Lab. The Marathon, which has identified eliminating plastic waste as one of its sustainability goals, plans on providing 30,000 of the containers. If runners dislike the taste, they can suck out the water and toss the biodegradable shell as they run.
“The consumption of non-renewable resources for single use bottles and the amount of waste generated is profoundly unsustainable,” Skipping Rocks Lab says. “The aim of Ooho is to provide the convenience of plastic bottles while limiting the environmental impact.”
Previous races have gotten good feedback for using Ooho!, with runners reporting that the containers provide the perfect amount of water.