Bruce Strong, CEO of Mpact, the largest paper and plastics packaging and recycling business in Southern Africa, says plastic still has a crucial role to play, particularly in food storage and reducing carbon emissions, despite the anti-plastic movement gaining traction globally.
“The world is anti-plastic at the moment but the anti-plastic sentiment is to a large extent misplaced,” Strong told Business Day on Monday.
The UN last week agreed on a landmark deal to create the world’s first global plastic pollution treaty, which has been heralded as the most significant green pact since the 2015 Paris climate accord.
Strong highlighted that a number of studies indicated that consumers globally were quite confused about this topic due to competing priorities concerning plastic litter and carbon emissions in different countries.
“If you (as a country) prioritise carbon footprint over plastic litter, there is no doubt that plastic packaging is better in most respects, in the current applications,” Strong said.
“A plastic bottle has got a much lower carbon footprint than a glass bottle,” he said, adding that plastic should be favoured by nations that view emissions as more important for slowing down global warming.
“So if you are prioritising carbon footprint then you should use more plastic.”
Strong said the key was to make sure that plastic doesn’t leak into the environment and become litter, noting the group was addressing areas in its business where it still produces plastics that are not recyclable.
“Plastics are here to stay for the foreseeable future and they should be because they also reduce food waste, keeping food fresh, which means that poorer people are able to get food over longer distances and it won’t go off,” Strong said.
He welcomed government’s move to introduce the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations as a key policy instrument to address the increasing volumes of plastic pollution and to ensure producers take responsibility for the life cycle of the products they put into the market, including post-consumer waste disposal.
However, Mpact’s board has decided to sell its plastic trays and films and sheeting business, Versapak, citing that its products were not fully aligned with Mpact’s strategy.
The packing group that was hived off Mondi about a decade ago, said on Monday it was positioning itself to take advantage of global supply disruptions, which were now worsened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The upward inflationary pressure arising from global supply chain disruptions, exacerbated by the current Ukrainian crisis, is expected to continue for the foreseeable future,” Strong said.
“The group has implemented measures to mitigate against the effects and exploit any opportunities that may arise from the disruptions. Nevertheless, the impact on the availability and cost of raw materials remains uncertain.”
The paper business benefited from buoyant local container board and carton board demand. In addition, the paper converting division benefited from the recovery in the industrial and quick-service restaurant sectors, and growth from new products sales.
Net debt increased to R1.8bn from R1.4bn, mainly due to a cash outflow in respect of the share buyback undertaken in January 2021, as well as investments made in capital projects.
Update: March 7 2022
This article has additional information.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.