Thailand works to shift away from plastic

Bananas covered by plastic bags in Thailand (Source: VNA)

The Thai Packaging Association (TPA) has announced that Thailand’s packaging and printing industries are shifting away from plastic and utilising more bio-flexible products in line with the government's policy to ban plastic packaging in the future.

Manit Kamolsuwan, president of the TPA, said the policy will encourage many companies of Thailand to come up with initiatives and apply new technologies in line with the global movement against plastics to protect the environment.

Local producers use flexible packaging such as film, mostly for foods and beverages, including other raw materials such as cast polypropylene film, polyethylene terephthalate, nylon, aluminum foil and laminated film, Manit said.

The country’s packaging and printing industries will consume increasing volumes of paper in the context of global concern about increasing plastic waste, he added.

According to the TPA’s latest report, paper consumption is about 70 kg per person per year.

Meanwhile, Kriangkrai Tiannukul, vice-chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), said the packaging and printing industries will grow between 2-3 percent in 2019, driven by food and beverage demand.

VNA