India's Recycled Plastic Industry Faces High Capacity Utilisation Challenge

India's recycled plastic industry is facing under-utilisation, even with government mandates for recycled content in packaging. Despite investments, capacity constraints are driven by low demand from brands not complying with regulations. This threatens the aim to reduce import dependence, according to Goutham Jain of APR Bharat.

India's recycled plastic industry is struggling with under-utilisation of capacity, despite government efforts to enforce the use of recycled materials in packaging. The Association of PET Recyclers (APR) Bharat highlighted this challenge, reporting substantial investments yet unutilized production capabilities.

Goutham Jain, Director General of APR Bharat, noted that approximately 20-25% of the industry's production is idle due to insufficient demand from key packaging users who are not meeting the mandated recycled content requirements. Despite a government push for these mandates, demand has not increased as expected.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has set guidelines for increasing the recycled content in PET packaging to 40% by the 2026-27 fiscal year. Nevertheless, brands are slow in adopting these targets, affecting plans to reduce imports and strengthen domestic supply chains.

Jain emphasized that recycled PET provides a more environmentally friendly and economically viable alternative to virgin materials, reducing carbon emissions and conserving resources. Despite some concerns about food-grade recycled PET supply, the industry insists that it can meet regulatory demands effectively.