Plastics prove tough target for circular treatment at ElitePlus summit

Three themes resonated during the two-day session at ElitePlus. Speaker after speaker highlighted the importance of packaging for brand building, consumer trust, and brand authenticity. Almost everyone said that the packaging industry needs to provide solutions so that there is a convergence in next-gen purchasing power and eCommerce strategies in order to boost sales. Finally, there was a consensus that AI tools need to provide real-time analytics and precise production and shop floor capabilities.

In all this, there was the theme of growth. Luciana Pellegrino, the president of the World Packaging Organisation said that the global packaging industry (which is valued at USD 1.3-trillion in 2024) will grow at 3.7% from 2026 to 2032. She alluded to the shift in customer expectations, with many seeking same-day delivery (60% of the millennials expect one-hour delivery).

Nadir Godrej, chairman and managing director of Godrej Industries, received a standing ovation for his keynote address in verse which spoke about creating a purpose-driven brand and the power of social responsibility. 

Saugata Gupta, managing director and CEO of Marico, highlighted the evolving role of packaging, noting the impact of eCommerce. He said that consumers are willing to pay 10% more for sustainable products. He felt India can be a leader in packaging design and waste management.

Jacob Duer, president and CEO of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, said that the nonprofit has supported 80 global sustainability projects. He emphasised collaboration, highlighting his nonprofit’s work with Reliance, HUL, Uflex, and Godrej in India on the circular economy and reducing virgin plastic. 

Ashok Chaturvedi, founder, chairman, and managing director of UFlex, traced the journey of plastic manufacturing and the importance of multilayer for product safety. He spoke about the role of AI in plastic waste recycling and the collection of plastic waste based on real-time data.

Chaturvedi said, “The crux of the matter is, how does one make packaging materials sustainable and circular?” Other than underscoring the importance of real time data, he said that the chief thing was how divisive definitions tarnish the sustainability drive — and how industry bodies are struggling to agree on the terms like ‘recycled’ and ‘reuse,’ and this is creating confusion among consumers.

(l–r) Lucia Pellegrino, Nidhi Verma, Saugata Gupta, Jacob Duer, Nadir Godrej, and Ashok Chaturvedi

The plenary addresses were delivered by Anand Kripalu, managing director and global CEO, EPL; Amit Chaturvedi, president of petrochemicals operations, Reliance Industries; and Nick Vafiadis, vice president of global polyolefins at Oil Price Information Service (OPIS), a Dow Jones company.

Kripalu highlighted EPL’s India story of taking lamitubes to the world. He mentioned the company’s greenfield project in Brazil and how the factory was set up in 15 months. He said, “EPL is a rare example of a non-IT multinational that has made India proud across the globe.” Kripalu spoke about sustainability and the endeavour to achieve Ecovadis Platinum status.

Vafiadis shared insights on the Indian economy, projected to grow at 6.5–7% over the next decade. With per capita consumption of PE at 5kg, 30% of the global average, there's significant growth potential. Post-Covid hygiene awareness is driving double-digit PE demand, while infrastructure development fuels HDPE pipe demand for water, gas, and 5G telecom.

The first panel discussion of the summit revolved around brand owners’ perspectives, challenges, and opportunities in the context of packaging. This was followed by the business sessions. 

Amol Lovalekar of the Hygienic Research Institute spoke about brand strategy in FMCG and recycling for circularity. Vijay Singh of SAJ Food Products spoke about brand building. Divy Malik, a partner at McKinsey, provided a broader global perspective on the plastic waste crisis. He emphasised that 75% of India is yet to be built, presenting a unique opportunity to “build it right” with a focus on recyclable and sustainable packaging designs.

Satyendra Kumar, the director of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change delivered his address. His presentation provided an overview of India's multifaceted efforts to address the growing challenge of plastic pollution.

One of the key highlights of his address was the scale of plastic usage across various sectors in India. According to Kumar, packaging accounts for 40-43% of plastic consumption, with the remaining used in consumer goods (26%), infrastructure and buildings (20%), and other applications. This underscores the critical role the packaging industry must play in driving sustainability.

Two panel discussions were of importance. The one moderated by Jeevaraj Pillai of UFlex. This panel asked the all-important question — is India ready for recycling? The panellists discussed these questions in the context of the drivers, challenges, and barriers to recycling in India. After which Anshul Khandelwal of Reliance New Energy moderated the critical role of flexibles, both in terms of materials and technology, in green energy. 

The takeaway was this: Circularity must be economically sustainable. But how does one manage the balance sheet when recycled resin is more expensive than virgin resin; and rPET is 20% more costly. This fundamental contradiction was discussed, again and again. The complexities in achieving true circularity, and circularity does not offer a value proposition to the consumer.

In the third set of business sessions, Mahendra Patel of Mamata Machinery spoke about emerging film extrusion technologies in the context of sustainable flexible packaging solutions. Johann Kreilinger of Brückner Maschinenbau spoke about the latest biaxially-oriented line concepts for packaging applications in the context of the specialty film market. Marcel Perrevort of the Reifenhauser Group spoke about performance efficiency in film extrusion.

The founder of Haldiram’s India, Shivkishan Agrawal, was felicitated at this edition of the summit, in recognition of his lifetime achievements.

On day two, Kunal Bajaj of Jupiter Group called for global standards in flexible packaging and vendor approvals based on them. He said, “Just like Hallmark for gold and FSSAI for food, packaging materials that need laminate should require quality certification.”

There were three panel discussions on day two. The first one was moderated by Marzban Thanevala of SB-Constantia Flexibles, and was about aligning product development to circularity needs. The second panel discussion was moderated by PN Sridharr, general manager of ITC's Paperboards and Specialty Papers Division. The panellists discussed flexible packaging with alternative materials.

All the panellists were clear that their ultimate goal was the responsible use of materials and recyclables, and making the supply chain much more efficient. Meanwhile, companies continue to invest in new production facilities. The good news is, much more emphasis was placed on recyclable and material-reduced products, and in the expansion of capacities and technologies for compounding, regranulation and chemical recycling. Parallelly, intensive work is being done in the development of PPWR-compliant packaging solutions and sustainable product design. 

Ankit Jain, senior vice president of supply chain at Flipkart, provided the eCommerce perspective on packaging sustainability. Notably, the company now uses 20% of the packaging it did in 2019, by optimising the packaging to just that which is needed — what it calls best-fit packaging.

Hermann Veismann, managing director of the business unit of printing and finishing at Windmöller & Hölscher, talked about the company's perspective of a circular economy—which includes thinner, recyclable substrates, reduced colours in packaging design, and recycling-friendly inks.

A Appadurai, country business manager of HP Indigo India, highlighted how the HP Indigo 20000 has 40-65% lower environmental impact than CI Flexo and Gravure print systems across all categories for a 3,000-sqm coffee pouch job. A more sustainable choice for flexible packaging.

Automation took precedence as Pau Xifra, managing director of Spain-based Comexi, shared the innovations the company has made in automation for packaging, with solutions ranging from automatic adhesive re-adjustment to automation in slitting.

The Shrimanker siblings, Vasu and Yash, of Pelican Rotoflex reported strong growth with more than 80% repeat customers, 500+ employees, 1,100+ global installations, and Rs 2-billion in revenue last year with a CAGR of 14%. Its Rajkot facility spans 25 acres, with 25 more acres acquired in Ahmedabad for expansion.

The final panel discussion was moderated by Cyril Ruiz-Moise of Bobst. The panellists spoke about advanced technologies and applications for the product authentication industry, especially in the context of anti-counterfeiting. The panellists included Ankit Gupta (Holostik Group), Manoj Kochar (Holoflex), Smitesh Surana (Everest Holovisions), and Nakul Pasricha (PharmaSecure).

Francesco Peccetti, area sales manager and board member at Italy-based Colines, delivered the last address of the summit — highlighting innovations in cast film extrusion for sustainable film solutions.

The takeaway
There were two questions which emerged at the conclusion of the ElitePlus summit. The lack of proper facilities for safely disposing of waste is a huge obstacle. Many speakers alluded to the fact that the problem is exacerbated by ineffective laws and bans on plastics that aren’t logistically enforceable. While these regulations are meant to help, they often miss the main causes of waste issues and end up putting too much responsibility on consumers. 

The importance of creating policies that are practical and based on sound science, benefiting both producers and consumers. It is seen that “reduce, reuse, recycle” is a familiar mantra, but there are sharp disagreements over which to prioritise. Then, there is the challenge of geo-politics, because of which a petrochemical glut has made new plastic cheaper than recycled. The surge in manufacturing in China and the US which has led to oversupply of products such as polyethylene.

The industry must urgently address the tension between profitability and sustainability.