PepsiCo India advances recycled packaging push as sector flags circularity gaps
PepsiCo India said Pepsi Black now uses a 100% recycled bottle and that 70% of its films have shifted to polyolefin-based monomaterial laminates. At an industry roundtable, companies called for stronger EPR execution, food-grade recycled-material approvals and sorting infrastructure.
What happened
PepsiCo India, Dow and sector participants called for better EPR implementation, food-grade approvals, sorting infrastructure and MSME support to meet
Key facts
- PepsiCo India said Pepsi Black uses a 100% recycled bottle
- PepsiCo moved 70% of its films to polyolefin-based monomaterial laminates
- India targets 10% recycled content in flexible plastic packaging and 30% in rigid packaging
- PET recycling rates in India are above 80%; flexible-plastic recycling is about 5%
- Alliance to End Plastic Waste targets 100,000-200,000 tonnes of additional annual collection and recycling in each of five tier-2 and tier-3 cities
- At least 1.5 million waste pickers operate in India
- A world-scale recycling plant processes about 50,000 tonnes annually versus about 2 million tonnes for a petrochemical refinery
Why this matters
Packaging, recycling and waste-management partnerships could become strategic assets as brands seek reliable EPR compliance, food-grade recycled resin supply and monomaterial conversion capabilities.
What to watch
- Indian regulatory approvals or standards expanding permitted use of food-grade recycled plastic in contact-sensitive packaging.
- Evidence of stricter EPR audits, penalties, portal verification or mandated traceability for FMCG packaging waste.
- Announcements of new rPET, sorting, chemical-recycling or flexible-plastic recovery capacity in India.
- Rival commitments from Coca-Cola, Bisleri, ITC, HUL, Nestlé or major snack brands on recycled content and monomaterial packaging.
- Price spreads and supply disruptions between virgin resin and food-grade recycled resin.
- Consumer or regulator challenges to recycled-packaging claims where collection and actual recycling rates remain low.
- Expand recycled-content claims from Pepsi Black to additional high-volume beverage packs where food-grade rPET supply is available.
- Lock in multi-year sourcing partnerships with recyclers, waste-management firms and converters to secure traceable recycled resin and monomaterial-film capacity.
- Standardize packaging designs around fewer polymer formats to reduce sorting complexity and improve recovery economics.
- Build retailer- and consumer-facing collection initiatives in major urban markets to strengthen EPR evidence and feedstock availability.
- Increase disclosure of recycled-content percentages, collection outcomes and third-party certification to reduce greenwashing scrutiny.