UFlex releases a report on recycled content

The UFlex Group has been committed to sustainable innovation. It has pushed recycling limits with its Asceplius film, and has been contributing to reduction of plastic waste on earth, one unit at a time, and creating a closed loop ecosystem.

Chaturvedi said, “Currently, we recycle close to 30,000-mt of multilayer plastic (MLP) waste annually across India, Poland, and Mexico, and the goal is to reach 1,00,000-mt recycling by building additional global recycling facilities globally.”

“We laud the Indian government’s plastic waste management (PWM) and extended producer responsibility (EPR) regulations that will transform the waste management ecosystem in India and accelerate the pivot to sustainable development and circular economy,” he added.

Chaturvedi emphasises, “However, there is a need to measure recycled content in packaging accurately and avoid inconsistencies in EPR reporting. The study report by Plastics Packaging Research & Development Centre (PPRDC), supported by Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering & Technology (CIPET) and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), is a step in the right direction that proposes the development of a standardised measurement of recycled PE content in packaging by producers, importers, and brand owners to deliver on their individual and industry EPR objectives.”

The School for Advanced Research in Petrochemicals (SARP) - Laboratory for Advanced Research in Polymeric Materials (LARPM) at the Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering and Technology (CIPET) in Bhubaneswar, conducted a study recently, which explains a method of determining rPET content in packaging materials.

The study says there should be a national standard or operating/audit process to assess and regulate the recycled content of PCR plastic packaging. This can be achieved by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy and DSC-based thermo-analytical techniques. This helps discourage practices like green-washing and waste fraud that diminish circularity and erode public trust in plastic recycling.

Furthermore, the report builds on previous findings of SARP-LARPM, CIPET, in collaboration with the Foundation for Innovation & Technology Transfer, IIT-Delhi, for the method of determination and estimation of mechanically recycled PET content in packaging materials. Earlier, these institutes recommended using a UV-Vis Spectrophotometer to accurately predict the recycled content in v-PET/rPET composites.

Also, government and industry experts discussed a wide range of topics including the scope and status of EPR implementation in India and the challenges faced by producers, brand owners, and importers in complying with EPR guidelines, among others.

Prominent figures from the industry who participated included Deepak Mishra, joint secretary, department of chemicals and petrochemicals (PC), Government of India; Meenal Passi, head - petroleum, coal and related products department (PCD), Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), Shishir Sinha, director general, Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering and Technology (CIPET), Smita Mohanty, principal director, Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering and Technology (CIPET): School for Advanced Research in Petrochemicals (SARP) - Laboratory for Advanced Research in Polymeric Materials (LARPM), and others.