Manjushree Technopack opens recycling plant in Bangalore

Manjushree Technopack (MTL), one of India’s largest rigid plastics packaging companies and backed by Advent International, launched its new initiative “Born Again” to deliver recycled packaging material to the FMCG Industry and support brands in their journey of creating a greener world. Born Again, (a venture under MTL New Initiatives), is MTL’s first step towards building an ecosystem of circular consumption. It is vertically integrated with the plastic waste collection ecosystem, to reduce the amount of plastic waste going to landfills and to deliver virgin-like quality PCR (Post-Consumer Recycled) resin (PP and HDPE) to FMCG customers.

Initiative to deliver recycled packaging

As more and more companies pledge towards the reduction of plastic waste and move towards 100% recyclable packaging, it is an opportune time for MTL to enable brands with packaging solutions made from recycled plastics. MTL already has in-principle arrangements with several Global and domestic FMCG brands for their PCR requirements. In the first phase, MTL will use PCR resins to produce non-food packaging (personal care, home care, lubricants, and paints) and secondary packaging for food products.

The company’s state-of-the-art recycling plant was inaugurated in Bidadi Industrial Area, Bangalore. Radha Mohan Gupta, regional procurement director (South Asia), Reckitt Benckiser, lit the ceremonial lamp virtually and Ullas Kamath, joint managing director, Jyothy Labs, cut the ribbon at the venue. The plant has the capacity to process more than 6,000 Metric Tons (MT) of rigid plastic virgin-like quality PCR resin per annum. The company intends to set up multiple recycling plants across India over the next two years, with a total capacity of close to 20,000 MT.

Sanjay Kapote, chief executive officer, MTL commented, “Sustainability is an integral part of our business goals. Today, brands are eagerly looking for reliable solution providers who can help them with post-consumer recyclable waste material of their products. We are very keen to support the circular economy and strongly see the potential to become one of the few players in the industry to offer brands end-to-end solutions for recycling and EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility). MTL’s recycling plant in Bangalore and our collaboration with SZW is our first step towards bringing more structure to the highly unorganized collection of plastic waste.”

The demand for post-consumer recyclables is projected to grow from US $ 7.7 billion in 2019 to US $ 10.2 billion by 2024. However, the biggest factor hindering the production of PCR at scale in India is the unorganized waste collection and segregation mechanism leading to scrap contamination. For the recycling plant in Bangalore, MTL has partnered with a leading social enterprise, Saahas Zero Waste (SZW), to collect the plastic waste generated across the city. SZW manages 38 tons of waste per day across Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Goa.