During the event, Ashok Chaturvedi, CMD, Uflex, emphasised on the importance of plastics and its recycling in India. He said the only alternative available for plastic as of now is wood. However, with the kind of requirement that exists, wood will not be a viable solution as all trees will have to be cut to meet the demands, resulting in shaving the green off our planet.

On recyclability, Chaturvedi said that it is possible to recycle plastics. During the show, the company explained the workings of its newly commissioned pyrolysis plant at its packaging division in Noida. Pyrolysis is the thermal decomposition of materials at elevated temperatures in an inert atmosphere. Here, Uflex is recycling multilayer packaging waste into pellets through a fairly simple method.

Chaturvedi said useful industrial and household products can be made out of these pellets, like benches, ladder, etc. Samples of these were on display at the green pavilion during Indiaplast 2019. “People are of the perception that plastic is not recyclable. It is for the visitors to witness the possibilities of recycling plastics and converting it into something useful,” he added.  

 The best part is that this machine does not emanate any toxins. “I want to emphasise that it is possible to recycle and reuse the recycled plastic time and again,” Chaturvedi said.

He added that flexible packaging is the ideal solution for packaging and the products packed in it are usable only because of the barrier properties that protect the food from moisture and oxygen which may destroy the food. The packaging helps save all the essential properties of the edible product in it.

Chaturvedi was confident of the demand for flexible packaging growing further in the coming years. “When there is a complete solution for waste plastics, the demand is bound to grow. This particular solution of recyclability will encourage people to use more plastic-based materials. I also think that plastic is the cheapest and best possible option available in the market for packaging edible items. This will definitely help increase the demand of flexible packaging,” he said.