Sri Lanka’s pioneer in creating eco-friendly products, BPPL Holdings, affirmed its commitment to sustainability in business in view of Earth Day this month. This year’s theme, ‘Restore our earth’, focuses on natural processes, green technologies and innovative thinking to restore the world’s ecosystems.
The Group noted that globally, sustainable management and protection of Earth’s natural resources has become a priority to mitigate the burgeoning industrial practices that negatively impact the environment. Sustainability continues to play a key role in protecting ecological health and natural resources for future generations.
One of BPPL Group’s core businesses, Eco Spindles, recycles over 360,000 plastic bottles a day into polyester yarn and monofilaments. The company’s mission is to reduce the carbon footprint made on Earth by integrating sustainability and technology into waste recycling.
“We embrace sustainability at the heart of our business operations. To date, we’ve recycled over 380 million plastic bottles. We are very proud of our contribution towards a greener Sri Lanka. We must all understand that Earth’s resources are exceedingly finite and engage in business in a way that protects and conserves natural resources. In today’s day and age, businesses need to be held accountable to making sustainability a part of their corporate strategy,” noted Dr. Anush Amarasinghe, Managing Director of BPPL Holdings.
A commitment to sustainability requires companies to engage in ethical business practices. Sustainable sourcing plays a critical role in creating responsible supply chains and integrates social, ethical and environmental performance factors into the process of selecting suppliers. To this effect, BPPL noted that the Group’s subsidiary, Beira Brush, practised ethical sourcing by procuring their timber from FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified plantations in Sri Lanka.
“FSC certified timber is a strong pillar for sustainable industries. An FSC certification ensures the use of environmentally appropriate forest management practices in the production of timber. FSC helps take care of the ecosystem, wildlife and people who call these forests home,” explained Widya Karunaratne, Head of Compliance and Sustainability at BPPL Holdings.
Further to engaging in ethical sourcing, the Group also prioritizes sustainable power generation in their factories. 53% of the power required by the company is generated out of solar and biomass energy.
The synthetic filament factory at Eco Spindles is a LEED certified green building, and generates solar energy during production. The filament factory has been designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across energy consumption and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.
“Burning fossil fuels and continuing to deplete already scarce resources is irresponsible of businesses and individuals. The market for clean energy is changing as there is a shift towards renewables and other advanced energy technologies. Located close to the equator, we are gifted with an abundance of sunshine, making solar energy generation a very practical solution. As an energy-intensive industry, the commitment made by BPPL towards sourcing renewable energy is notable,” remarked Mr. Karunaratne.
Reiterating their commitment to sustainability, Managing Director of the Group, Dr. Amarasinghe reiterated that businesses need to not only focus on making profits, but also understand and mitigate the impact a business will have on the environment and societies.
However, he noted, “Our biggest contribution to sustainability in Sri Lanka is through the recycling of plastic bottles. However, we only recycle up to 20% of the plastic that has been used in the market. If we are to thrive as a cleaner economy, it is critical that we implement strict waste segregation rules including the collection of segregated garbage which certain municipalities are no longer practicing, and strengthen collection efforts”.
BPPL Holdings PLC:
Founded in 1984, BPPL Holdings PLC through its wholly owned subsidiaries Eco Spindles (Pvt.) Ltd. and Beira Brush (Pvt.) Ltd. exports recycled polyester yarn, monofilaments and professional and household cleaning tools to international markets in USA, Canada, UK, Australia and New Zealand with a considerable market share in each region. The group also produces household cleaning brushes retailed locally, under the brand ‘Tip Top’.
