18 July 2022

Pulak Kant, a 2021 Tide Turners champion from Midnapore, West Bengal says: “We have a bread problem”.

Four million tons of bread is produced in India annually, and most of it is packed in single-use plastic. Pulak wanted to make a difference by raising awareness of the problem among bread manufacturers and bakeries while reintroducing an alternative that existed before the use of single-use plastics – butter paper. After research and surveys, Pulak realized that most bread is consumed within 24 hours of purchase so plastic packaging is unnecessary. Pulak found that butter paper – aside from being biodegradable and environmentally friendly – is 22% cheaper and 45% more economical in printing costs than plastic packaging.

See all young plastic pollution change-makers from Africa and India

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