Taking down the invisible walls

Poland – ‘We are dealing with a volatile market that is essentially behaving like a spoiled child,’ said Hrishikesh Vora of PaperWorks Trading at last week’s Paper & Plastics Recycling Conference in Warsaw, Poland. ‘Business cannot and must not stop,’ he urged delegates, advising them to ‘buy conservatively but regularly’ to get the best price for scrap materials.

‘The good news is that our trade has people of high integrity; they are after long-term contracts and don’t just want to make a quick buck,’ Vora said at the event, organised by Recycling Today Media Group. There are two ‘topics of the hour’ – namely protectionism and China, he remarked.

‘In today’s world, there are many things that divide us. There are real walls between countries, such as the one proposed by president Trump, and imaginary walls like the one caused by Brexit. China’s National Sword campaign is another kind of invisible wall,’ Vora expressed. ‘The question is; are we on the cusp of building more walls or taking them down?’

The Mumbai-based entrepreneur declared India as a land of opportunities. For instance, India’s paper production is projected to reach 27 million tonnes by 2030, up from 15 million tonnes this year. The average income is set to double in the next ten years.

‘We have the fastest growing paper consumption in the whole world,’ Vora told delegates. At the same time, he issued a warning. ‘US firms are currently shipping the bulk of their comingled paper to India just to get rid of it. Down the line, India’s government will wake up and say; “No!” Because that is not acceptable. No country wants to be a dumping ground,’ he stated.

‘So, it would be wise to ask yourselves; is the same thing happening in China going to happen in India if this trend continues? It may. I can definitely foresee India shutting the doors to cheap recyclables too,’ the trader commented.

A more detailed article about the Paper & Plastics Recycling Conference will appear in Recycling International’s upcoming issue.