Of the developing countries involved at the UN COP26 Summit in Glasgow last year, India was way ahead in the ambition of its commitments. Led by PM Modi, India is committed to increasing the generation of non-fossil fuel-based energy to 500 GW, which will account for more than 50% of our energy requirements in 2030. We also agreed to cut carbon emissions by 1 billion tonnes. Accounting for a business as usual scenario, India’s carbon emission would be tallied above 4 billion tonnes without special efforts to reduce carbon emissions. Essentially, this means we will cut emissions by about 22% percent by 2030. India will also cut its carbon intensity by 45 % in the same period, which means we will allot renewable energy to a larger cross-section of industry and commerce sectors to reduce dependence on fossil fuels. 

The targets are ambitious but achievable. The reason we say achievable lies in the definition of net-zero. Simply, net-zero by 2050 means that the world, our country included, will be able to offset carbon emissions to the environment by balancing them with carbon removed from the atmosphere. There are many ways to orchestrate this balance—packaging material, used by 99.99% of manufacturers in the country, adds to the waste management requirements and often ends up in landfills. We need to reimagine the role of packaging and how a switch to sustainable packaging as per MoEFCC policy can help us reduce the environmental strain and open new business opportunities. 

What do the MoEFCC Guidelines Cover?

The new policies coming into effect over the last 18 months and through 2022 can pose a challenge for manufacturers. The Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021, announced in August by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), identified that 20 identified SUPs will be phased out by next year. These are generally classified as lowest utility and highest environmental impact. In India, 18 states have already implemented a complete SUP ban, but the upcoming July milestone will extend the legislation across the country.

• Plastic packaging material regulations were increased to 75 microns from 30th September 2021 and will subsequently shift to 120 microns thickness from 31st December 2022. 
• Non-woven plastic carry bags shall not be less than 60 Gram Per Square Meter (GSM) from 30th September 2021.
• The manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of the following single-use plastic, including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene, commodities will be prohibited from 1st July 2022.
•  The policy regulations cover a variety of products, including – earbuds with plastic sticks, plastic sticks for balloons, plastic flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene Thermocol, packaging films around sweet boxes, invitation cards, and cigarette packets.
• The regulations do not apply to shall not apply to commodities made of compostable plastic.

Improving Packaging Safety Guidelines:

We are also witnessing stricter regulations regarding packaging material safety, especially for food products. The use of specific material for perishable or shelf food products does not allow recycled plastic or newspaper packaging. Policymakers have also mandated that it is the responsibility of the printers and producers of food packaging to ensure there is zero transfer of printing ink to the food product and that the packaging material does not have any reaction or potential for contamination in the storage and transport supply chain. Regulations like these necessitate a rethink on manufacturers to ensure they do not fall afoul of the laws. With a growing consumer awareness surrounding organic food and environmental footprint, brands must ensure that this transformation happens immediately.  

For example, the government has banned using a solvent commonly found in printer ink called Toluene. Also called methylbenzene, a hazardous, clear, colorless liquid that turns into vapor when exposed to air at room temperature. Toluene has been linked to several acute and chronic health concerns, including eye and throat issues, breathing difficulties, and increased risk of developing allergies and asthma. 

The Complex Reality of Global Packaging Compliance:

While India is taking progressive steps towards transforming the packaging industry into a sustainable, conscious, and safer ecosystem, developed markets like the USA and the European Union already have stricter standards and benchmarks. 

The reason this complexity is essential to understand is simple. It is time for an Indian packaging manufacturer to look beyond India as a market. However, navigating the compliance terrain based on geographies can be complex. A digital, end-to-end, global packaging and supply chain solutions provider represents the ideal go-to consultant for help in navigating the complex layers of global packaging compliance. 

Globally, brand owners have to also adhere to Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) reporting legislation across the world. EPR makes brands responsible for declaring the packaging material on shelves and highlighting the end of the lifecycle process for the same material after consumption. The crux of the idea is to ensure that manufacturers are thinking beyond just the product’s sale to the consumer. 

A quick tour around the globe of some of the largest producer economies helps us formulate the depth of the compliance complexity that a packaging manufacturer might encounter:

European Union

• They aim to effectively phase out single-use plastics in a bid to reduce marine contamination and pollution.
• Encouraged use of reusable containers through deposit return schemes (DRS). These schemes have gained much traction in countries like Sweden and Norway. 

USA

• A total ban on the use, production and import of paper-based food packaging that contains PFAS. California has been exceptionally transparent about the findings linking PFAS to cancer, vaccine disruption and other severe environmental and bodily consequences.
• Misleading advertising on packaging will also be prohibited. There is a law to prevent the term ‘recyclable’ from being used on product packaging without verification to avoid misleading consumers who believe they are making ethical purchases.

Australia

• 100% of all packaging material should be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.
• 70% of plastic-specific packaging should be recyclable or compostable by 2025.
• 50% of packaging components to be made from recycled material by 2025.
• Single-use plastic packaging will be obsolete by 2025

China

• China will ban all non-degradable plastic bags by 2025 in a 100% ban across all provinces. 
• By the end of 2022, all major hotels and guesthouses should have stopped offering disposable plastic products, and by the end of 2025, smaller operations will be expected to have ceased as well.

The variance of compliance laws and their implications on customers of packaging material manufacturers in India is equally significant. One way for brand owners to avoid the risk of non-compliance is to go by the strictest design requirements for packaging that is sold worldwide. However, this may not always work. The more niche the need, the more challenging it becomes to maintain feasibility and efficiency to apply it to all packaging. 

Suppliers also need to pay close attention to all the different requirements when deciding whether “worldwide” environmental labeling is a feasible and effective option for their specific case. Depending upon the types of products sold, the packaging materials used and the types of packaging components most frequently placed on the market, they can decide whether to create region-specific labeling and environmental claims or a worldwide labeling system.

Fuelling Global Packaging Ambitions

About five years ago, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry set up an independent committee to oversee and keep track of global compliance laws. The main reason to bring independent experts from organizations like the Indian Institute of Packaging, Export Development Authorities, industry associations and research institutes was to overcome the enormous rejection ratio of packaging material leaving Indian shores. 

In 2018, the Indian packaging industry was the fifth largest globally. With the advent of the pandemic and the rapid shift to digital purchasing of standard requirements like grocery, the demand for packaging is bound to sky-rocket further. Yet, the Indian packaging industry only comprises about 4% of the world and is way behind markets like Brazil, China and the USA. 

Clarity on global compliance laws, access to innovative packaging production technology, and material and capital to scale production are the prime growth areas Indian packaging manufacturers classify as the top priority. As global demand for sustainable packaging delivered at scale peaks in the next decade, Indian manufacturers can look at a two-fold growth from domestic and foreign markets. 

Digitalizing the Packaging Supply Chain

For packaging manufacturers to take advantage of the latent demand in the market, a few upgrades are definitely required:

1. Compliance laws and the constant monitoring of global trends to capitalize on future demand
2. Better vendor management is the need of the hour as packaging manufacturers will have to look wider for more material options.
3. Balance of volumes and pricing to take advantage of the optimum SKU RoI
4. Design innovation to compete at the global level while staying price-conscious.
5. Strict process and quality control implementation to ensure seamless delivery and a superior customer experience

These are core tenets of the Moglix approach to helping more than 700 customers and 16000 suppliers manage demand and supply worldwide. As one of the world’s largest packaging supply chain platforms, our endeavor to digitize end-to-end procurement is what manufacturers need to capitalize on the massive influx of demand for better packaging solutions soon.