Starlinger installs first food-grade plastics recycling facility at Srichakra Polyplast, India

India-based recycling specialist Srichakra Polyplast commissioned a PET bottle-to-bottle and a post-consumer polyolefin recycling line from Starlinger in September. With the new lines, Srichakra Polyplast upgraded its facilities and now offers high-grade recycled plastics to customers in India, Europe and the US.

Srichakra Polyplast €8.6m in upgrading and expanding its plastics recycling capabilities. The new recoSTAR PET 165 iV+ is the first of its kind Starlinger has installed in India. The produced rPET pellets are suitable for food-contact and can be used for food and beverage packaging. Srichakra is now able to provide premium food-grade quality rPET for food packaging to the Indian and international markets.

For the processing of post-consumer polyolefin packaging, Srichakra uses a Starlinger recoSTAR dynamic 165 C-VAC recycling line with Starlinger’s unique odour reduction technology. Starlinger’s three-step odour reduction procedure – consisting of material preparation, highly efficient degassing, and post-treatment in the smell extraction unit of the pellets – eliminates embedded odours so that the recycled pellets are suitable for use also in demanding applications.

The Starlinger polyolefin recycling line produces up to 1,300kg of high-quality, odour-free recycled pellets per hour that can be directly converted into non-food packaging.

Ravindra Venkata, CEO and Co-founder of Srichakra Polyplast, said: “The new world-class technology not only enables us to produce food-grade quality recycled plastic for customers, but also gives locally-sourced plastics a new life, preventing it from entering the environment. We’re proud to be the first in India to achieve this standard and continue our work towards making the world a better place.”

Paul Niedl, Commercial Head of Starlinger Recycling Technology, added: “Srichakra Polyplast is a pioneer of the circular economy in India, and we are proud to be their technology suppliers. With the new Starlinger PET bottle-to-bottle recycling line with SSP treatment they have expanded their scope of products now into the important field of food-grade rPET. They are also the first recycler in India to use Starlinger odour reduction technology for the processing of post-consumer polyolefin waste. With their high-quality products Srichakra Polyplast is going to set new standards for the Indian plastics recycling industry.”