World Environment Day 2026: Mother Dairy launches degradable milk pouch in India
Key takeaways
- Mother Dairy has launched a degradable milk pouch for its Cow Milk variant in the Delhi National Capital Region, India.
- The packaging can transform into bioavailable wax that soil microbes naturally decompose, according to the company.
- The innovation ensures no changes for consumers in storage or handling and is introduced without increasing milk prices.
On World Environment Day, Mother Dairy, an Indian dairy company, has launched a degradable milk pouch for its Cow Milk variant across the Delhi National Capital Region. The solution is said to be a “first-of-its-kind” in India, engineered to degrade in soil within a few years.
Mother Dairy has adopted an innovation that enables the material to transform into bioavailable wax, which soil microbes naturally decompose into natural elements, according to the company.
“This packaging innovation has been designed to ensure a seamless consumer experience, with no changes required in the way consumers store, handle, or dispose of the milk pouch,” says Mother Dairy.
Dr Meenesh Shah, chairman at National Dairy Development Board and Mother Dairy, highlighted that the transition to degradable packaging is being undertaken without any impact on consumer milk prices.
Alternative to conventional plastic
Milk pouches, common in developing countries, are usually made from low-cost low-density PE film. The packaging format can enter the environment when lacking proper waste management infrastructure. Mother Dairy’s solution was developed to address the problem of fugitive plastic, or plastic that escapes formal waste collection and recycling systems.
The company asserts that the new packaging will remain recyclable and have no impact on the milk’s quality or taste.
Recycled and bio-based materials are increasingly adopted as viable alternatives to plastic for dairy packaging to comply with international regulations. Recently, Amcor released an updated version of its UniPak 1 kg pot for the dairy market. The solution was made entirely of PP and is recyclable, where the infrastructure is in place.
Earlier this year, Sidel provided Britannia, an Indian F&B company, with its first aseptic PET bottles for its Winkin’ Cow dairy drink portfolio. The complete aseptic PET packaging solutions were delivered at Britannia’s greenfield dairy factory in Ranjangaon, India.
