Plastic straw ban on, companies fall in line – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Top beverage companies fell in line on Tuesday with the government refusing to postpone its decision to ban single-use plastic items, including straws, that are bundled with tetrapaks of drinks such as juices and milkshakes.
With the ban coming into effect from Friday, homegrown FMCG major Dabur, which sells juices under the Real brand, said it has commenced production of juice packs with integrated paper straws. “We are committed to meeting the regulations and will ensure that all packs come with integrated paper straws,” said Shahrukh Khan, executive director-operations at Dabur India.

R S Sodhi, MD at GCMMF (Amul), which requires 10-12 lakh straws every day, said the organisation is ready with alternatives despite a slight delay in shipments. “Currently, we are working on manufacturing biodegradable straws that are cheaper than paper straws,” said Sodhi.
Similarly, Parle Agro, maker of Frooti, said the ban will not impact its sales. “There will be no impact on sales, but there will be an impact on cost to the company due to costs incurred in shipping and transitioning to biodegradable straws,” Schauna Chauhan, CEO at Parle Agro told TOI.
The government’s refusal to delay the ban comes amidst strong lobbying by beverage companies. Wanting the ban to be postponed, they had argued that paper straws were in short supply in India and their imports at higher cost would impact operations.