Food Marketing & Technology - India June 2019 | Page 56

Interview
‘Recyclable’ alone is not enough
anymore; the packaging has to be
‘recycled’. Share your views on
this.
The world is full of biodegradable or
recyclable materials but there is a cost
associated with recycling the material.
Thus, the economic benefits of recycling
need to be understood, and we need
to raise awareness about packaging
materials that can be recycled in an
economical way. Also, it needs to
be understood whether a particular
material can be recycled or can it be
used in the same format again or not.
There is a big difference between true
recycling and mere collection.
Because aluminium in cans is one of
the purest alloys, it is a very sought-
after material and by far the most
valuable material in the recycling
stream. Cans are being recycled into
other aluminium products like cars,
bicycles or building materials. Plastic
and glass have little economic value
associated with recycling and cannot
be recycled in the same form multiple
times.
Tell us about Ball Corporation’s
beverage packaging investments
in India. What are the future
expansion plans?
Ball has two high-speed state-of-art
beverage can plants in India.
India’s per capita consumption of
aluminium can is a tiny 1 against other
developing countries, such as Brazil’s
~100, and China’s ~40. Hence, we see
a lot of potential for growth in India.
We made a significant investment, and
expanded our beverage packaging
footprint by building our second
beverage can plant in South India in
2017.
Ball continues to monitor the
development of demand for beverage
cans in the Indian market and will
consider future investments as needed
to service the growth.
Would you like to tell us about
your major clients in India?
Our customers are both global and
Indian beverage brand owners in
multiple beverage categories including:
beer and craft beer; carbonated soft
drinks; juices; energy drink; and
flavoured alcoholic beverages.
Which is the fastest growing
segment of your company?
In India beer is a fast-growing category,
and beverage cans as a package work
very well with beer. To the beer
consumer, the can provides a package
which is tamper-proof and chills fast.
Compared to other substrates, such
as glass bottles, the aluminium can is
the most suitable form of packaging
for beer also because of its’ high
production efficiency and modular
transport and storage. Due to the can’s
lightweight nature and stack ability,
the CO2 emissions associated with
shipping, storage and refrigeration
of beer remain lower than those of
heavy glass bottles. Also collecting,
sorting and recycling aluminium
cans is easy, and energy and water
consumption related to it remains low.
As a comparison, returnable beer glass
bottles need huge amounts of energy
and fresh water, as the bottles need to
be collected and washed before filling.
Are you facing any kind of
challenges in this domain and
how are you overcoming those
challenges?
The beverage can industry needs some
help from the regulators and state
governments to help this sustainable
package grow. In India, the aluminium
beverage can is still a relatively new
form of packaging, and the awareness
of its benefits amongst consumers
and the value-chain players, such as
retailers and distributors, is low. Since
this truly circular packaging leads to
a more sustainable town/city/state/
country, we are encouraging official
bodies at all levels to ensure that cans
are treated at least equitably in terms
of duties and levies on products that
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June 2019
are packaged in them. For instances in
states like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana
and Rajasthan, the tax on per litre of
beer is higher if it is packed in cans
compared to glass bottles. We are
seeking an equitable treatment from
an excise duty perspective with the
respective state governments.
Moreover, in the short-term, a
relative preference in duties for
beverages packed in aluminium cans
will accelerate their familiarity and
amongst value chain and consumers
and thereby accelerate the benefits
it can provide. We would urge the
authorities concerned at National and
State levels to provide these benefits as
soon as possible.
To drive home the benefits of
aluminium
beverage
packaging,
Ball has partnered with Hindalco
Industries Ltd. and Can-Pack India
Pvt. Ltd. to form the first-of-its-kind
consortium – Aluminium Beverages
Can Association of India (ABCAI).
Through this association, we intend
to build awareness about aluminium
beverage
packaging
that
will
highlight innovation, performance,
sustainability and economic value
among our key stakeholders.
Tell us about future vision Ball
Corporation
Our goal is to provide the Indian
consumer, the most sustainable
packaging available. We also want
to help our customers, beverage
companies have a quantum positive
impact on the environment, businesses,
consumers and society.
As stated above, the can penetration in
India is very low i.e. one per capita for
cans. The Aluminium Beverage Can
Association of India (ABCAI) believes
there is an opportunity to increase this
to 8 per capita by 2030. ABCAI is also
striving for 1 in 4 packages to be a can
package over the same period.