Packaged to kill? Plastics importers likely undermining Russian sanctions, according to CMF

17 Nov 2022 --- Packaging companies could be inadvertently circumventing sanctions against Russian petrochemicals, according to the Changing Markets Foundation (CMF). In a recent report, the organization showed that numerous fashion companies in Europe are purchasing plastic-based fabric materials from third-party sources linked to Russia. The organization says the same is likely true for the packaging industry.

The report, titled “Dressed to Kill: Fashion brands’ hidden links to Russian oil in a time of war,” details how major synthetic fiber producers in China and India are providing US and European brands with materials made with Russian oil. These materials are due to come under sanction in the EU next year and are already sanctioned by the US. 

George Harding-Rolls, a campaign manager for CMF, tells PackagingInsights that “given the vast production capacity of plastics in countries which have not imposed such sanctions, such as India and China, it is highly likely that businesses importing packaging or fiber from their countries – whether directly or through their supply chain – will inadvertently be undermining the sanctions.”

“Given the murky supply chains at play here, the only surefire way to avoid sourcing goods tainted by Russian oil is not to use packaging made with fossil-fuel feedstocks,” he says. 

“The war in Ukraine has revealed our enormous and untenable dependence on fossil fuels and should serve as a wake-up call to the packaging industry to shift to more sustainable alternatives or reuse business models.” 

Sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine war can only be upheld by cutting reliance on fossil-fuels, says CMF.Securing supply chains 
Industry players assert their use of Russian-derived materials is minimal and will end completely in time for the sanctions. A spokesperson for German multinational chemical corporation BASF tells us that “for packaging material that is based on oil-based raw materials, BASF purchases them on the international market.” 

“BASF has already reduced the share of Russian sources and will continue to reduce it to zero by February 2023 – when the sanctions against Russian oil come into effect.” 

Similarly, the British Plastics Federation (BPF) says, “The UK historically imported very little material from Russia prior to current sanctions.” 

According to 2021 UN Comtrade data, Russian material accounted for 0.3% of all imported polymers in the UK. “We encourage packaging companies to be diligent when evaluating their supply chains,” says a BPF spokesperson. 

However, CMF says these measures do not necessarily prevent indirect sourcing from Russia. “Plastic producers, such as India’s Reliance, have been making money hand over fist by importing cheap Russian crude to make many of the plastic products the West still imports,” says Harding-Rolls. 

PackagingInsights has reached out to PlasticsEurope and European Plastics Converters for comment. 

Due diligence 
The only way to ensure robust due diligence, such as what is proposed in EU legislation, would ensure that companies must improve the traceability of their products, making the visibility of products’ provenance more readily addressed, says Harding-Rolls. 

CMF’s report names 31 brands tied to plastic producers Reliance in India and Hengli in China. It says that 26 of the companies responded with “scant details” of where their materials originated from. 

“Governments can ensure that measures taken to address the energy crisis restrict non-essential industry oil and gas use – for example, the share that would typically go to producing unnecessary single-use plastics and packaging.” 

“We cannot escape the reality that we must drastically reduce plastic production and consumption, and this is an opportunity to do that as well as restricting the money flowing back to Russia,” Harding-Rolls concludes. 

By Louis Gore-Langton