Mother Dairy to recycle 832 tonnes of plastic by March 2020

Mother Dairy, a leading milk supplier in Delhi-NCR, on Wednesday said it will recycle 832 tonnes of plastic by March next year as part of its efforts to protect environment.

"To tackle with the burgeoning menace of post-consumer plastic waste, Mother Dairy debuted its plastic waste collection and recycling initiative in Maharashtra in June 2018 by rolling out the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) programme," it said in a statement.

Mother Dairy, with the help of a Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO), has collected and recycled around 1,073 tonnes of plastic waste till May 2019. This quantity includes around 183 tonnes of multi-layered packaging (MLP) and 890 tonnes of non-multi-layered packaging.

The company said it is implementing 100 EPR in Maharashtra and now wants to replicate the success of EPR by spearheading the programme on a pan-India basis.

"Mother Dairy, through leading PROs, will collect and recycle plastic waste across 25 key states of its operations and is targeting to recycle around 60 per cent of the total MLP used, i.e, about 832 tonnes by March 2020," it added.

This recycling effort has already been initiated in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Bihar.

Mother Dairy's MD Sangram Chaudhary said: "Consumers opting for our alternative options are leaving a green footprint every day. However, some of the products from our company's portfolio involves recyclable plastic packaging of both forms MLP and non-MLP and being a responsible organisation, Mother Dairy has acquired central registration for brand owner under Central Pollution Control Board, which is in line with the plastic waste management (Amendment) Rule, 2018."

The company is committed for 100 per cent EPR implementation of post-consumer used plastic waste generated over the next 3 years.

"Mother Dairy has entered into contractual engagement with leading PROs and with their help, we will be able to network with waste picker communities, recyclers and also liaison with urban local bodies for collection and recycling post-consumer plastic waste," he added.

The company is already selling milk through automated bulk milk vending machines, popularly known as token milk from over four decades. This has helped in restricting the generation of about 900 tonnes of plastic waste in Delhi or NCR annually, the statement said.

Mother Dairy was commissioned in 1974 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).
It is a leading dairy player which manufactures markets & sells milk and milk products under the Mother Dairy brand.

The company sells edible oils under the Dhara brand while fresh fruits and vegetables, frozen vegetables and snacks, range of unpolished pulses, honey, pulps and concentrates are marketed under the Safal brand.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.