As part of the efforts to cut down plastic waste, the Kerala Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (Milma), with the help of Clean Kerala Company Ltd. (CKCL), will start the recovery of used milk sachets from December. The initiative will be launched in Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha, Kottayam, and Kannur districts in December. It will be extended to the other districts in January 2020, Milma chairman P.A. Balan said.
Milma and CKCL are planning to recover the sachets using the Haritha Karma Sena, scrap traders and students/schools, according to the Milma chairman.
Milma procures around 13 lakh litres of milk daily for supply in the State, and uses approximately 25 lakh plastic sachets to sell its products. With little or no mechanism for their systematic recovery, these covers are disposed of haphazardly. It now uses plastics that have a thickness of 53 microns for its sachets.
While Milma is exempted from the Statewide ban on single-use plastics that will come into effect from January 1, the State Cabinet had set a rider. It reminded agencies such as Milma, the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (Bevco), and Kerafed that they are liable to buy back used plastics under Extended Producers’ Responsibility.
The used plastic sachets can be used for purposes such as road works, Milma officials said. Milma also plans to launch Milk ATMS where consumers can buy milk in bottles, in an effort to reduce the use of plastic.
Milk Day celebration
Animal Husbandry Minister K. Raju will inaugurate the Milk Day celebrations on Tuesday at the Tagore Centenary Hall in Thiruvananthapuram. V. Mukunda Das, director, Chandragupt Institute of Management, Patna, will deliver the Dr. Verghese Kurien commemoration lecture. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Milma dairies across the State will be open to schoolchildren and the general public.
