At the recent ElitePlus conference held in Mumbai, Vimal Katiyar, professor at IIT Guwahati, shared insightful perspectives on why plastics, despite their challenges, remain indispensable materials. He discussed the opportunities in recycling, the complexities of food-contact safety, and the urgent need for innovation and indigenization in India’s packaging ecosystem.

Opening his address with a striking question – “If plastic is bad, then why are we here?” – Vimal Katiyar, professor at IIT Guwahati, reminded the audience that plastic’s enduring relevance lies in its unique combination of versatility, efficiency, and sustainability when used responsibly. “It’s a wonderful material,” he said, “quite sustainable in terms of manufacturing and meeting consumer requirements. The real concern lies in how we manage it after its service life.”

He noted that while plastics have been under intense scrutiny, they continue to play a vital role across industries due to their performance and resource efficiency. What needs urgent attention, he explained, is their end-of-life management and integration into circular systems that extend their utility and reduce waste.

Katiyar highlighted that India already enjoys a unique advantage in plastic recycling compared to many developed economies. “Recycling is a blessing in disguise for a country like ours,” he remarked. “We are able to recycle a large portion of our plastic waste, which is commendable. The government, too, is strongly promoting recyclability and circularity.”

However, he cautioned that circularity is not a permanent fix. “Recycling only delays the lag phase,” he said. “It extends the lifecycle of plastic but does not completely eliminate the issue of what happens at the end of that life.” This, he emphasized, is the challenge policymakers, scientists, and industry leaders must address collectively – ensuring that circularity leads to meaningful reduction in waste and carbon footprint rather than merely postponing disposal.

Tackling the food-grade challenge

A major focus of Katiyar’s remarks was on recycling for food-contact applications, an area governed by strict safety standards. “While PET has been successfully recycled and accepted as food-grade, challenges remain with polyolefins like polyethylene and polypropylene,” he explained.

Multilayer films, widely used in flexible packaging, complicate recycling efforts. “Sometimes we over-design packaging,” he said. “These multi-material films are excellent in performance but difficult to separate and purify during recycling.”

He emphasized that unintentionally added substances (NIAS) – such as inks, adhesives, and chemical residues – must be carefully removed from packaging before reprocessing. “We all want to live a healthy life,” he stated firmly. “We cannot afford contamination in any form when it comes to food-contact materials. Safety should never be compromised.”

Innovation and indigenization – the way forward

Beyond regulation, Katiyar urged industry stakeholders to look inward – toward innovation and self-reliance. “Indigenization is very important,” he said. “Whether it’s machinery, resin manufacturing, or packaging processes, we must strengthen our domestic ecosystem.”

He called for collaboration among converters, recyclers, and technology developers to create customized, locally relevant solutions. “We need to establish our own ecosystem – more indigenized, more customized, and more suited to our consumers’ requirements.”

As a member of the FSSAI task force, Katiyar revealed that ongoing efforts are underway to enable the use of recycled polyolefins in food-grade applications. “The regulatory path is being developed,” he said, “but we still face technical challenges such as segregation, cleaning, and requalification of materials.”

A call for responsible progress

Concluding his address, Katiyar reiterated that innovation must go hand in hand with responsibility. “Safety should not be compromised, but we must find optimized solutions to make plastics more recyclable and sustainable,” he said.

His message was clear and pragmatic – plastics are not the enemy. The true challenge lies in rethinking how we design, use, and recover them, ensuring that this “wonderful material” serves society without harming the planet.