India's Flipkart eliminates single-use plastic packaging

Throughout this process, Flipkart has also ensured that it is fully compliant with all EPR regulations and through its network of recyclers, the equivalent quantity of single-use plastic going to consumers is fully recycled, Flipkart said in a media statement.

Having achieved this milestone, Flipkart is now actively working with its seller partners who fulfil customer orders directly from their locations to educate them and enable them to move towards alternative materials. Furthermore, Flipkart is actively working with the ecosystem to understand how it can best implement other initiatives to create a more circular economy for plastics so that the entire ecosystem can move towards a more sustainable future. Through proactive interventions and guidance, Flipkart has already achieved a 27 per cent reduction in the use of single-use plastic packaging in its seller fulfilments.

Flipkart has also launched ‘E-commerce ready packaging’, where it has been able to ship close to 15 per cent of products without adding a secondary layer of packaging. Flipkart’s ambition is to reduce the need for an outer layer by working with brands across apparel, electronics and home furnishings to ship their products in the original manufacturer/brand packaging. Flipkart also is working towards making sure that the packaging used does not cause any deforestation by scaling packaging from recycled and alternative materials.

The company is also working on responsible forestry and sourcing, with plastic free returns in the supply chain and plastic-free returns for sellers. Through these efforts, Flipkart continues on the sustainability journey and further strengthens its commitment to sustainable solutions for packaging and realise its vision of holistic, sustainable growth. In order to transition towards a low carbon economy, Flipkart has also committed to a 100 per cent transition to electric vehicles in its city logistics network by 2030, according to Flipkart.

Flipkart is focusing on resource efficiency in its operations by increasing the use of renewable energy and executing projects to improve water management, waste management, and overall energy productivity across its strategic facilities including fulfilment centres and data centres. The majority of Flipkart’s facilities are now ISO 14001 certified, and many of the company’s large warehouse projects are being developed in line with IGBC’s Green Building Guidelines.

“At Flipkart, we place great emphasis on sustainable and responsible business practices. Moving towards 100 per cent single-use plastic elimination is one of the significant steps we have taken towards fulfilling our commitment to creating a sustainable ecosystem. We are now focused on enabling our seller ecosystem to adopt sustainable packaging alternatives as well, and to create positive environmental and social impact across the entire supply chain,” Hemant Badri, senior vice-president and head of supply chain at Flipkart said.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (GK)