A move is underway to bring the cement industry under the mandatory jute packaging act with a view to increasing the use of jute bags in the country.
To this end, a sub-committee under the technical committee of the Ministry of Textiles and Jute collected samples of jute bags, official sources said.
Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) and Bangladesh Jute Mills Association (BJMA) have made the samples of bags as per specifications set by the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institute (BSTI).
Presently, the cement industry use 700 million bags annually -- all made from woven polypropylene (WPP) and every cement factory has a WPP plant to produce such bags.
With development expanding at a rapid pace in the country, the demand for packaging materials will shoot up over the next two or three years, sector insiders said.
The cement factories are churning out about 30 or 35 million tonnes of cement a year, although their capacity is nearly 45 million tonnes, said Shahidullah, vice president of the Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association (BCMA), in a meeting last month.
The domestic demand for cement will hit the 50 million tonnes-mark in the next two or three years to keep pace with the development in the country, he added.
Contacted, Deputy Managing Director of a plant of Shah Cement Ltd. Khalilur Rahman said if the jute millers can supply requisite jute bags to the cement industry, there will be no problem in complying with the packaging rules.
"Using eco-friendly packaging materials would be obviously a positive step. But cement is a sensitive product and materials of specific quality are needed for its packaging," he said, adding that the authorities should remain careful about the quality of bags.
Khalilur Rahman was of the view that jute bags should be laminated with plastic materials in order to ensure quality packaging for cement. "But such packaging won't be environment-friendly. So, how such jute bags would protect the environment?" he questioned.
On the other hand, the cement manufacturers would also suffer losses, if they have to shut down the WPP plants they have set up spending a large amount of money, he added.
BJMC Chairman Mahmudul Hasan said, "We have already held a meeting with the stakeholders, including cement manufacturers, to outline a strategy on how to bring the cement industry under the purview of the mandatory use of jute bags."
Samples of jute bags suitable for cement have also been made but some more time is needed to complete all necessary procedures to this end, he mentioned.
Replying to a query, the BJMC chief said they have placed a proposal to the cement manufacturers to look into the possibility of converting the WPP plants into jute bag units.
"If WPP units can be turned into jute bag units, cement manufacturers won't suffer any losses," he added.
Replying to another query, Mr Hasan said they would try using low-hazard plastic laminate for jute bags, if necessary, to check environmental pollution.
At a meeting of the technical committee of the Ministry of Textiles and Jute held on April 26, the representative of the Department of Environment said cement factories were given environmental clearance to set up only cement producing plants, not the WPP plants.
So, operating WPP plant as part of cement factories is inconsistent with the Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, he said, adding that WPP bags are harmful to the environment.
There are a total of 70 cement factories in the country, 34 of which are large units.
Presently, a total of 17 products are on the list of Mandatory Jute Packaging Act 2010 -- paddy, rice, wheat, maize, fertiliser, sugar, spices, turmeric, onion, ginger, garlic, coriander, pulses, potato, flour, crude flour (ata) and rice bran oil.
The country saw a significant rise in the use of jute bags following enforcement of the law in January 2014, sector insiders said.
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