India’s largest science-based Ayurveda major Dabur India said it has become a 100% ‘Plastic Waste Neutral company’ in India, having collected, processed and recycled around 27,000 MT of post-consumer plastic waste from all over India in the 2021-22 financial year.
The company said in a statement that it is the first in the country to achieve this landmark. Dabur said, “Today, we collect, process and recycle the same amount of plastic waste that Dabur sells in its product packaging in a year, thereby becoming a ‘Plastic Waste Neutral’ enterprise.”
“It is a matter of great pride for the entire Dabur family, who have worked towards not just collecting plastic waste from our cities, towns and villages, but also preventing the waste from reaching our landfills and oceans. This includes all types of plastic waste, from PET and HDPE bottles, PP caps and labels to multi-layered plastics and beverage cartons. As a Responsible Corporate Citizen, Dabur has always been recognized for its commitment towards sustainability and ecological responsibility. We have made significant progress in our Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) journey and have now become the first Indian FMCG Company to become Plastic Waste Neutral in India,” Dabur India executive director-operations Shahrukh A Khan said.
Dabur had set itself the target of collecting, processing and recycling over 22,000 MT of post-consumer plastic waste from across India in the year 2021-22. “We surpassed that target three months ahead of schedule and have enhanced our full-year target to 26,956 MT. We work with government-registered recycling partners across the country and have taken progressive actions to reduce plastic waste in cities, town, villages, while also raising awareness about plastic waste management within the community. The collected plastic waste is being sent to different Recyclers, Waste-to-Energy Plants and Cement Kilns,” Khan added.
Dabur’s Plastic Waste Management initiative was rolled out in the year 2017-18 as part of the Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rule 2016, 2018 (amended). Under this initiative, Dabur has till date collected a total of over 54,000 MT of plastic waste (Recyclable and Non-Recyclable) direct from the end-users with the help of around local ragpickers in 150 cities across India. Dabur has also put in place a robust audit mechanism to ensure complete transparency and compliance to the state and central regulations and guidelines on Plastic Waste Management.
Moving forward on its mission to protect the environment and roll out special initiatives for ecologically sensitive areas, Dabur announced the launch of a new ‘Save the Environment’ campaign in Himachal Pradesh to create awareness within communities on managing plastic waste within their household. The company will be distributing cotton carry bags to replace the plastic bags that are currently being used in households, Dabur India corporate head-environment, health and safety Tusar Pattnaik said.
As part of this commitment, Dabur has also been working with school children across small town and villages, educating them about various types of waste and the benefits of segregating them at source. “We have also been supporting government schools by supplying them with waste bins, sanitation facilities, information, education and communication (IEC) material, etc. These initiatives, we feel, will go a long way in creating a Swachh Bharat and Swachh Himachal Pradesh. We are also working towards improving the livelihood and health of local ragpickers, waste collectors, recyclers in the state,” Pattnaik said.
