Ball’s facilities in Taloja and Sri City join Ball’s other can making plants that have been certified, starting with all of its Europe, Middle East, Africa (EMEA) plants in 2020 and extending to its first South American plants in 2021.

In a recent interaction with WhatPackaging?, Amit Lahoti, senior director and general manager, Ball Beverage Packaging, Asia, had said that the company had secured the ASI certifications for both the plants. “What ASI certification does is make its case for ensuring that all those ill-effects associated with the production of aluminium are avoided.”

The Aluminium Stewardship Initiative’s scheme aims to do for aluminium what the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) did for paper and wood, making sustainability performance a mainstream, visible issue. Ball’s plants in India have achieved both ASI’s Performance, and Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard certifications.

The ASI Performance Standard is a measure of how plants assess, manage and disclose its environmental, social and governance impacts. These include issues such as life-cycle thinking, recycling, greenhouse gas emissions, water and waste management, biodiversity, business integrity and the human rights of both workers and local communities. The ASI CoC Standard sets out requirements for the creation of a Chain of Custody for material that is produced and processed through the value chain.

330 ml sleek with MRF logo with reflection 3b gray box

Breaking the certification news, Lahoti said, “The ASI certification demonstrates our commitment to sustainability and enables our customers to embrace certified responsible sourcing practises for aluminium. By continuously evaluating and improving the aluminium supply chain, ASI certification will help India to achieve its carbon reduction targets, to develop a truly circular economy, and to respond to the growing demand from consumers for sustainable packaging.”

With 75% of aluminium ever produced still in use today around the world, aluminium has a vital role in creating a truly circular economy. aluminium cans are the world’s most recycled beverage package, with recycled metal saving 95% of the energy compared to the production of virgin aluminium. “Ball is partnering with like-minded organisations in India to increase the collection of used beverage cans and initiate the best methods, policies and actions to achieve a fully circular aluminium beverage packaging system,” said Lahoti.

Ball Beverage Packaging India is a subsidiary of Ball Corporation, which reported a net sales of USD 11.8-billion in 2020. In India, besides the two beverage can facilities in Taloja and Sri City Ball also operates one aerosol packaging facility in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.