Sustainability
Keeping the planet in mind is one of Polka Pop’s core values. We love our planet and are thankful for everything that it provides us with. We work hard everyday, invest time and money to create a business that cares for our planet as much as it does for us.
When we started Polka Pop, we were aware that our actions would have an impact on the environment. As a new business, we had a responsibility to the environment to do everything in our power to minimize our impact. We started by doing our research and speaking to experts in the field to understand the solid waste management and recycling landscape in India. We then decided to start with the first and most impactful decision - our choice of packaging material. We made a conscious decision to use transparent PET plastic to bottle Polka Pop.
The PET recycling ecosystem is very robust in India with recycling rates pegged anywhere upwards of 60%. While many brands believe that glass bottles are the solution, they are actually much worse in terms of their greenhouse gas emissions and environmental impact. Glass does help a brand create a premium positioning, but we’d recommend you be skeptical if they tout the environment to be their reason for choosing glass. Even when compared to aluminum cans, the greenhouse gas emissions across the lifecycle of PET bottles are lower. This is because the energy required to recycle aluminum is higher than what you’d require to recycle PET (and lesser for transparent PET). While cans are much better than glass, they do face higher damages in transit and these wastages are not ideal for both the customer and the environment. We also used a significantly higher quality of PET than most beverage players in the market, making it more attractive for recycling.
We said NO to using shrink wraps!
While most beverage companies use shrink wraps to bind bottles together for transport and storage, we have strictly said no to the use of shrink wraps, single use plastic or any LDPE (Low-density polyethylene) plastic. Even though cartons are almost 3 times more expensive than shrink wraps, shrink wraps are not recycle friendly.
Sending you a fancy printed box placed inside a shipping carton would make you more likely to Instagram your unboxing experience, but it would also generate double the waste. This is why we’ve decided to send you Polka Pop in just one sturdy cardboard box that is both reusable and recyclable, right from manufacturing to delivery.
We’re working towards becoming a plastic negative company! And we need your help.
Our latest endeavour is one we’re most excited by. We’ve partnered with The Disposal Company. The Disposal Company helps subsidize the ethical recovery and safe disposal of plastic waste which would otherwise end up in landfills, burned or be flushed into our oceans. They are India’s First Plastic Credit Platform dedicated to reducing waste. With their help, we’re aiming to make Polka Pop Plastic Neutral and hopefully soon after, a Plastic Negative company. They identify the amount of resources we use during production; and facilitate collection and recycling of the same amount of waste.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
You will see a little box at your checkout page which allows you to make your purchase Plastic Neutral. On checking that box a small sum is added to your order. This is the amount we need to recover and recycle the PET plastic used in your order. Apart from that, once you’re done using our bottles, please collect and sell them your local Kabidiwallas. The amount is not much, but the impact you have is great.
[1] https://www.beveragedaily.com/Article/2009/09/21/PET-bottles-greener-than-glass-or-aluminium-Study