Hyderabad-based ‘Kagzi’ brings alternative to plastic bottles

The firm has developed first-of-its-kind paper bottle made of compostable paper waste

Hyderabad: The generation of plastic waste is proving to be a concern for not just India but across the globe. Many companies are offering to recycle this plastic, while some are keen to provide alternatives to plastic. One such company, Kagzi Bottles, has developed a first-of-its-kind paper bottle made of compostable paper waste. These bottles, according to the company’s founder, can be used to store shampoos, conditioners and hand washes, etc.

“It was during my stint at my previous venture which was into packaging solutions I got a request from a client asking for fully sustainable packaging needs. This kind of brought back my idea of starting a bottle-making company that can act as an alternative to plastic, which I had thought of during my college days. With work and other things taking over, I never got the opportunity to seriously consider that idea. So, once this request came in, I jumped at the opportunity and dedicated myself to completely focus on developing this product,” says Samiksha Ganeriwal, founder, Kagzi Bottles, which is incubated at WE Hub.

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Samiksha started working on the product in 2018 and it took more than two years for her efforts to bear fruit. The startup got incorporated in 2021 and has already done trial tests with a popular personal care brand. It also has set up its assembly unit in Jeedimetla and plans to expand the facility once they start having large production in place.

The bottles are 100 per cent compostable and are made from paper waste that is sourced from Himachal Pradesh. This paper is mixed with water and other chemicals to make it into a pulp. And this pulp is then molded into different shapes of two halves of a bottle and these two halves are then attached to make one bottle.

“While currently, our product is only suitable for packaging externally used products, we are looking at developing packaging that can be used for food products. These bottles will then replace our day-to-day used items like milk, yogurt, and other food which are usually packed in plastic containers or packets,” says Samiksha who was born and brought up in Hyderabad and completed her MBA from Vignan Jyothi Institute of Management.