Coca-Cola launches 100% recycled PET bottle in India
Coca-Cola has introduced, which it claims to be the country’s first packaged drinking water brand made from 100% recycled PET (rPET), in Andhra Pradesh. Developed in partnership with ALPLA, the new bottle features a unique label with the declaration – 100% made from recycled food grade plastic.
09 Jun 2023 | By Aditya Ghosalkar
The new rPET integration is currently available in one-litre bottles.
Hyderabad-based ALPLA offers high-quality plastic packaging solutions. By delivering the rPET pre-forms, its activities aim to support Coca-Cola’s global goal of using at least 50% recycled material in all packaging by 2030. Currently, 90% of the company’s packaging is recyclable and 15% of PET used is recycled globally.
The new rPET bottle was launched for the packaged drinking water brand Kinley, and is currently available in one-litre bottles.
This step was only possible after the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) approved the use of recycled PET in food packaging, subject to compliance with its guidelines, after a thorough review of food safety.
Enrique Ackermann, vice-president, technical and innovation, Coca-Cola India and south-west Asia, said, “We are proud to be the first beverage company in India to offer our consumers a sustainable choice of packaging, by launching Kinley bottles made from 100% recycled PET.”
“Our new bottles made with food-grade rPET have value beyond their initial use, as they are fully recyclable and can be repurposed into new bottles. This is also an endeavour on our part to complement the government of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission,” added Ackermann.
SB Rammohan, managing director, of Sri Sarvaraya Sugars, bottling partner of Coca-Cola in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, said, “This move towards using recycled PET in packaging, aligns with our government’s vision of sustainable plastic use, and we are proud to be associated with Coca-Cola India as the first movers in this sustainability initiative.”
Utsav Dixit, head of sustainability, ALPLA India, said, “In addition to enabling Coca-Cola’s vision of creating a world without waste, the launch is aligned with ALPLA’s global sustainability targets.”
He added, “Our mission by 2025 is to produce 100% recyclable packaging with 25% recycled content on average, and this launch is a big step in that direction in India. We are proud to be associated with Coca-Cola and will continue to do everything it takes to enable a world without waste.”
Coca-Cola in its sustainability report stated, “Making 100% of our packaging recyclable globally by 2025 — and using at least 50% recycled material in our packaging by 2030; collecting and recycling a bottle or can for each one we sell by 2030; and bringing people and organisations together to support a healthy, debris-free environment.”