Paper stocks in demand amid ban on certain single-use plastic items

Ravi Agarwal, the director of Toxics Link, a New Delhi-based advocacy group that focuses on waste management, added that the ban was “a good beginning,” but its success will depend on how well it is implemented. The actual enforcement of the law will be in the hands of individual states and city municipal bodies. (Image: AP)

Stocks of companies related to the paper industry have gained amid a ban on certain Single-Use Plastic (SUP) items that kicked in from July 1.

Since June 30, shares of Seshasayee Paper and Boards jumped 7 percent, Andhra Paper gained 6.21 percent, Tamil Nadu Newsprint & Papers climbed 4.62 percent and Satia Industries advanced 4.62 percent on the BSE.

Among others, Star Paper Mills went higher by 4.14 percent, Emami Paper Mills gained 3.92 percent, West Coast Paper Mills (3.83 percent), Orient Paper & Industries (3.10 percent), JK Paper (2.93 percent) and Astron Paper & Board Mill (2.64 percent).

The identified SUP items include earbuds, plastic sticks for balloons, flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene (thermocol), plates, cups, glasses, forks, spoons, knives, straws, trays, wrapping or packaging films around sweets boxes, invitation cards, cigarette packets, plastic or PVC banners of less than 100 microns, and stirrers.

"While theoretically, paper companies should benefit out of this ban, most paper companies do not manufacture any of these items and may not want to venture into these in the near term," Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities, said.

With the ban on plastic straws coming into effect from July 1, large FMCG and agro-food companies have removed integrated plastic straws from small tetra packs of fruit juices as well as dairy products, and are shifting to paper-based straws and other alternative sustainable solutions.

Leading companies, including Parle Agro, Dabur, Amul and Mother Dairy, have replaced integrated plastic straws in the tetra packs with alternative sustainable solutions.

"Finally, the ban on single-use plastic has fructified now. Although the benefit of this move on listed paper stocks is limited, it is pertinent to note that leading paper producers are seeing good traction in demand," S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities, said.

According to a report by Kotak Institutional Equities, India’s ban on identified single-use plastic items from July 2022 is a step in the right direction. "The current ban will have a minimal impact on the financials of listed entities. However, a potential extension of this ban to other SUP items such as sachets/pouches/ wrappers/laminated tubes in the medium-term could impact the volumes or profitability of many consumer good categories," it added.

The report further said the current ban covers items which have a low utility and high littering potential. These are not widely used by large consumer companies and hence will have a limited impact for now.