Hello there! welcome back to Circular business podcast, a series where we look at circular economy from the Indian context. I’m your host and dost Sreepriya Sridharan and if you believe that economic progress and environment regeneration can go hand in hand then go ahead and hot the subscribe button, because this podcast is just right for you.

Today we will be looking at circular economy solutions within the FMCG sector.

According to IBEF-India Brand Equity Foundation, the Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector is India’s fourth largest sector with household and personal care accounting for 50% of FMCG sales in our country.

India’s packaged food market is expected to double to USD 70 Billion by 2025.

Now when I look at this data as a conscious consumer, my 1st worry is around the massive plastic packaging that accompanies most of FMCG goods in our day-to-day life. We can’t deny the fact that FMCG goods are easier to access and products are convenient to use, therefore it has mass adoption thereby enhancing lifestyles of ppl across different income levels.

But the question I want to put forth today is that- Is there a way to create products that are truly sustainable?

Can we really create packaging systems that are single use plastic free, durable & economical at the same time?

Well, my quest for answers led me to a whole new world of conscious, passionate start-ups and today, I’m delighted to bring to you the story of AmplePac-> http://amplepac.com/#innovation.

AmplePac is a sustainable packaging and packaging lifecycle management company, who are innovating to find solutions for waste-free packaging. They design & manufacture sustainable, metal based, reusable packaging with blockchain integrated tracking technology.

This Mumbai based start-up is founded and led by the phenomenal Arpita Kalanuria. Through the course of the episode you’ll notice how her journey into the world of sustainability is quite unique and inspiring and I’m super excited to present to you my conversation with Arpita.

You can reach out to AmplePac on -> [email protected]

Key takeaways from this episode:

1) 40 years ago most of the middle class and lower middle class homes in Indian cities were truly living a sustainable life, why then do we make it seem impossible today?

2) Arpita comes from a non-technical / non-engineer background, yet her passion to solve this packaging problem compelled her to find a solution and today AmplePac is leading the way in packaging innovation. So if you have identified a grueling problem, then go for it-find a solution. In the end, it is the action taken on our intent that helps us pave a new pathway.

3) Right from the concept stage, AmplePac has paid keen attention to details, not only in a circular design but also around the user friendliness of their products. This enhances its chances for becoming a hit as soon as they launch this packaging-as-a-service model.

Well, I am looking forward to see packaging as a service model being implemented in urban areas at scale within the next 5 years. What do you think about it?

Let us know your thoughts on [email protected]

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