Multi-business conglomerate ITC is scaling up its integrated waste management and sustainable packaging initiatives to do its bit for the government’s Swachh Bharat mission.
The Company has deployed the principles of circular economy to implement scalable, sustainable, and replicable models of waste management, besides investing in cutting-edge innovation in the area of sustainable packaging that substitutes single-use plastic, said S Sivakumar, group head, Sustainability, Agri, and IT, ITC.
“We at ITC are immensely proud to be able to contribute meaningfully to the Prime Minister’s vision of a Swachh Bharat through large-scale solid waste management (SWM) interventions,” Sivakumar said.
Solid waste management
ITC went past plastic neutrality in 2021-22. It collected and sustainably managed more than 54,000 tons of plastic waste across 35 states and Union Territories in India.
ITC’s flagship community-based program, ‘Well Being Out of Waste’ or ITC WOW, has an outreach of over 4.6 million households, 5.2 million school children, and over 2000 corporates since its inception. The benefits of ITC’s integrated program are – they prevent waste from reaching landfills, they improve supply chain efficiencies, encourage innovation, and create jobs, another critical national need.
The company also runs a separate community-driven program of decentralized solid waste management in 10 states, covering 14.6 lakh households. As part of this program, it builds the capacity of municipalities and panchayats on the implementation of waste management practices that reduces the amount of waste reaching landfills significantly.
In addition to the existing 10 PPPs in solid waste management, the company recently collaborated with the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, the Government of India’s initiative with the India Sanitation Council, to create 35 “lighthouse” villages demonstrating best practices on Solid and Liquid waste management across 17 districts in 10 states.
ITC has spearheaded a first-of-its-kind multi-layered plastic (MLP) collection and recycling program in Pune leveraging the R&D expertise resident within the ITC Life Sciences and Technology Centre. Another effort, ITC’s Green Temple initiative, is a closed-loop waste management model that processes waste generated in places of worship and provides biogas to temple kitchens and compost for gardens.
Sanitation
ITC runs an extensive sanitation program that has led to the construction of 39,400 individual Household Toilets (IHHTs), leading to 100% of project catchments becoming Open Defecation Free. The program has enabled the construction of 112 community toilets and over 2,000 toilet blocks in schools, which are now being sustained and maintained by the community, with women and girl children being the key beneficiaries.
Sustainable packaging
ITC’s Paperboards and Packaging Businesses are engaged in developing and promoting sustainable packaging solutions on laminated board and molded fibre platforms to substitute single-use plastics.
Innovative packaging offerings include the recyclable ‘Filo’ series, the biodegradable ‘Omega’ series, ‘Bioseal’, ‘Oxyblock’ as well as ‘Germ-free coating’, a solution for microbial-free packaging.
These solutions are increasingly being used by Quick Service Restaurants, food & beverages as well as takeaway segments, among others. ITC’s Personal Care brands such as Vivel and Fiama are leveraging ITC’s sustainable packaging expertise. For example, Fiama Shower Gel bottles are now made with 30% Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) material.
As part of ITC’s Sustainability 2.0 agenda driven by chairman Sanjiv Puri, ITC will endeavor to ensure that 100% of packaging is reusable, recyclable, compostable, or biodegradable over the next decade.
ITC, over the decades, has demonstrated environmental stewardship efforts through an array of large-scale sustainability initiatives, including water conservation, afforestation, biodiversity management, development of green buildings, increasing use of renewable energy, as well as adopting a 360-degree circular economy model.
It holds the distinction of being the only company in the world to be carbon-positive, water-positive, and solid waste recycling positive for more than a decade.
