Know who are the leading plastic waste producers in Pune

Pune: If someone asks you who are the highest plastic waste producers in your city, then probably you would point out to the plastic packaged drinking water bottles. However, in a recent brand audit conducted by SWaCH to identify the top plastic waste producers in Pune, it has been revealed that the milk packets consumed on a large scale in households constitute major garbage.The reason being is citizens lack awareness and knowledge of proper garbage disposal.

The survey also revealed that 44 percent of total plastic waste found in the city is non-recyclable and food packaging materials make 76 percent of the entire plastic refuse. Even plastics have various grades, due to which it becomes impossible to segregate and manage waste, which ends up filling up the open dumps.

Swach conducted a brand audit – as a part of a global initiative to break free from plastic, to identify the procedure to recycle and manage the plastic waste. 575 sites were scourged across 55 countries, and it was determined that Coca Cola, PepsiCo, Nestle Unilever, and Mondelez International are the top five plastic producers globally. Local brands like Chitale, Amul, and Gokul topped the list with the single-use milk packets. Chitale among the three, contributed to the most plastic garbage produced. Also, recent additions to the waste are the personal protective equipment (PPE) kits.