Waste Warriors will be the 30th​ UBC collection partner for Tetra Pak in India. ​​​​With this partnership, the packaging major’s collection network will now include 31 cities and 14 Indian army cantonments, covering 22 states and Union Territories.

Jaideep Gokhale, sustainability director, Tetra Pak South Asia, said, “At Tetra Pak, we have spent the past 16 years building a strong recycling ecosystem in India. Today over 40% cartons sold in India are recycled and we are committed to keep on increasing this significantly. Our partnership with Waste Warriors is yet another positive step in this direction.”

As per the tie-up, both organisations will work on raising awareness among the waste-picker community in India by educating them about the value they can derive from collecting UBCs and selling them to a recycler. The collected cartons will be sent to Khatema Fibres, a local paper-mill for recycling, which has been a recycling partner of Tetra Pak since 2013.

“The first and foremost challenge is to collect used cartons for recycling which in turn relies on greater awareness about the value of used cartons among the waste-picker community and on the public, who must segregate waste at source. Combined with the effort of the local government and the collective support of partners like Waste Warriors, we look forward to make Dehradun a cleaner, greener city,” added Gokhale.

In addition to educating the waste-picker community, the NGO will also help increase awareness about waste segregation and recyclability of paper-based beverage cartons among consumers. To help consumers return their used cartons for recycling, Tetra Pak and Waste Warriors will set up drop-off points or Gullaks at public and private locations across the city.

Avinash Singh, CEO, Waste Warriors said, “Waste Management is a pressing problem faced by the residents in Dehradun and our endeavour is to develop sustainable solid waste management systems to address the issue. Recyclable, paper-based beverage cartons are a great resource for recyclers, and all we need is an efficient system to collect the used cartons. Through this partnership with Tetra Pak, we are confident that will be able to help address the issue of waste management, support recycling of the used cartons and also help augment livelihoods of local waste-pickers in the process. A win-win for everyone involved.”

Tetra Pak along with partners has been working towards creating the robust recycling ecosystem for paper-based carton packages in the country over the past 16 years. The company claims that its cartons are primarily paper-based, with over 70% being made from paperboard which can be recycled into paper products, panel boards, industrial pallets, roof sheets and school desks among others.