Yash Pakka Ltd (YPL), a pioneer in the compostable packaging industry, has kicked off the development of its first overseas plant in the Central American country of Guatemala. The new plant is expected to be the world’s largest compostable flexible packaging and molded fiber facility. As the first big step in this direction, YPL has signed a memorandum of understanding with the country’s major sugar companies to procure sugarcane residue, also known as bagasse, which is the primary raw material used by the company for its products.

The company explored various geographies, including Mexico, Belize, Colombia, Brazil, and Peru, among others, to set up their first factory outside India. The primary market that they are willing to cater to is North America. It chose Guatemala due to the widespread availability of sugarcane in the country, as well as the positive response they received from Guatemalan authorities and sugar companies. The upcoming plant is expected to be operational by mid-2025 with a production capacity of 400 tonnes per day.

In its bid to find alternatives for single-use plastic, YPL has been developing compostable packaging solutions for more than four decades. For the company, pioneers in the packaging space, compostable flexible packaging seems like the natural progression, as it is expected to have a big impact on an industry that is moving towards sustainability. The development of flexible packaging has been in the works, and rigorous R&D has been conducted over the last couple of years by the company’s innovations team. The company has also been offering compostable molded fiber products for food service in India through its brand Chuk. The new plant in Guatemala will produce flexible packaging and moulded fiber products as its primary offerings. While these will be the focus, information about other products that will be manufactured in the Guatemala plant will be shared in due course.

YPL’s work has been towards developing alternative solutions for single-use plastic, which is aligned with the company’s vision of a cleaner planet. This is a step in that direction, and is expected to have a widespread impact.

Ved Krishna, Strategy Lead, Yash Pakka Ltd, commented, “We are delighted to partner with the Guatemalan sugar industry to start the process of setting up the world’s largest compostable packaging and moulded fiber facility. The idea is to work towards developing better bio-materials for food packaging and service.”

For more information: www.yashpakka.com