Speaking to The Packman on the sidelines of the 9th Speciality Films & Flexible Packaging Global Summit in Mumbai in September 2022, Gaurav Talwar, managing director of Brilliant Polymers, said, “Solvent-free lamination has made rapid inroads recently becoming the top pick for companies that are looking at sustainability seriously. Solvent-free laminating adhesive is now the new technology that the flexible packaging industry is moving toward. It enables the manufacture of various sustainable structures such as low monomer, ultra-low monomer, aliphatic system, etc. – this is the direction the industry is heading towards.”

“In solvent-based lamination, we typically have to dilute the adhesives to 35% solid while 65% solid is evaporated into the environment for which we need heat energy. This has huge carbon emissions. In solvent-free lamination, however, this can be avoided,” said Talwar.

Sustainability and source reduction

Talwar, an assertive proponent of source reduction, said, “While talking about sustainability, we also need to strongly consider source reduction. We should use less carbon, volume and mass at every step of the product life cycle and track the impact of a product at each stage. For example, to improve hand hygiene in a way that it is both effective and eco-friendly, Godrej Consumer Products recently came up with its innovative powder-to-liquid handwash Magic – the world’s most affordable and sustainable handwash. Converting the handwash to powder form allows them to significantly reduce the plastic used in packaging. Compared to a regular handwash refill, we need only half as much plastic.”

“Right now the industry is very much engrossed in things like monolayer, plant-based films, recycling of plastics, etc. That is absolutely fine although these structures are yet to be fully vetted, evaluated and tested. But the real question arises after these laminates are being used – how are we going to collect them? That question is yet to be answered. I think a lot of focus is needed not just on mono-material, but also on finding a solution to collect, segregate, process, recycle and reuse this material – that is how a circular economy will happen. I think a lot more needs to be done in this direction and the government has to lead the initiative – be it through a PPP model or with the help of local bodies.”

Strategies ahead and Indian flexible packaging industry

Brilliant Polymers recently inaugurated a new plant in Ambernath which has doubled the total capacity of the company to 45,600 tonnes. Talwar said, “Our strategy for India and global markets is to expand geographically and technologically. Geographically we are now exporting our products to several more countries – earlier it used to be just Africa and Gulf. Now we are catering to all of South Asia, South East Asia, and we are also looking at Europe and the US. Our strategy, especially for India, is to remain focused on solvent-based and solvent-free adhesives. However, we are also evaluating heat seal coating, cold seal coating, and water-based adhesives as the growth areas for the coming years making ourselves a full-service supplier in laminating adhesives.”

Talwar is bullish about the Indian flexible packaging industry. He said, “As far as the flexible packaging industry is concerned, I don’t see any real threat. There is going to be more demand for food, consumer goods, pharmaceuticals products etc. in the coming days. So the demand for flexible packaging will increase even further. Moreover, the industry is talking about expansion and growth. There is a positive sentiment in the industry despite shrinking margins.”