Kenyan recyclers to provide baling innovation to boost waste management

Kenya PET Recycling Company Ltd. (PETCO Kenya), a parent
organisation of the recyclers of PET bottles and containers, has contracted
local firms to produce balers to ease collection, packaging and transport of
waste PET bottles.

Joyce Gachugi, Country Programme Manager of PETCO, said this
while speaking in Nairobi when the recycler signed a partnership contract with
Industrial Area-based PET bottle collector firm, Karsam.

Gachugi said that the baling innovation would boost efforts
towards proper waste management by increasing capacity for PET collectors
across the country.

“The bailers will compact the PET waste bottles into
manageable bulks further making them easier to handle and transport,” Gachugi
said.

Gachugi also said that he had ordered more baler machines
from China to further boost the innovative solutions of baling post-consumer
PET plastics.

“We have placed an order from China to complement the ones
that we already have, and we expect delivery for the first batch in August this
year,” she said in Athi River.

Gachugi was speaking in Nairobi when the recycler signed a
partnership contract with Industrial Area-based PET bottle collector firm
Karsam.

According to Gachugi, PETCO which has a factory in Athi
River, about 40 km east of Nairobi, has also ordered more baler machines from
China to further boost the innovative solutions of baling post-consumer PET
plastics.

Karsam’s director Denis Gacau said the firm would provide
employment opportunities to the youth by putting up collection centres in
counties.

“We intend to put up two collection centres in each county
and target to collect an average of 200 tonnes of PET bottles every month, this
will offer a solution to the challenge posed by post-consumer PET bottles,” he
said.

John Waithaka, PETCO Kenya’s chairman, said the company was
looking forward to partnering with other recyclers organisations to realise the
goal of making all plastics recyclable by 2030.

And also, it will cut down single-use of plastics in a way
to promote use of recycled plastic micro-plastics.

“PETCO will provide a price subsidy of 5 shillings (about
0.05 dollars) per kilogram of PET bottles collected and recycled by Karsam.

“We shall also be extending the same in levies and grants to
upcoming collectors, this is an incentive to bring more partners into the
business,” said the chairman.