Faced with the COVID-19 panorama, today more than ever, the Plastic Industry must work 100%, says Mauricio Yánez, Sales Manager at Polymer Solutions

Plastic mitigates the spread of COVID-19, says Mauricio Yánez, Sales Manager at Polymer Solutions. As he explains, many cities have repealed their prohibitions, since, in the face of the pandemic, plastic bags contain, among other things, infectious biological waste.

According to the manager, in Peru the use of plastic bags with antimicrobial technologies beneficial to the environment and that can degrade much faster than a conventional bag is promoted.

“The entire Plastic Industry today must be working at 100%; It is our first line of containment to have safe, innocuous products, without contaminants; The recycling industry is essential, especially at this time; we can make bags out of recycled material to contain waste ”.

Food packaging – he emphasizes – is one of the most favored in the market because it is the first barrier that guarantees the consumer products free of contamination.

Now, faced with the great challenges, such as the regulations and the consequences of COVID-19, he pointed out: “Sadly, we see that companies that made garbage bags, today are making bags for bodies in order to contain diseases and preserve health.”

In addition, in the case of plastics versus other materials, he stressed that the authorities, before passing a law, should consider hard data, such as those offered by a life cycle analysis.

“Our legislators must understand that legislation should improve a situation, be it environmental or health, and not just do it by votes; if you eliminate the plastic bag at this time, you put the health of many people who distribute products or the health of those who collect our waste at risk ”.

Likewise, he ruled that, now more than ever, it is essential to rethink the real problem, and it is that, according to Mauricio Yánez, it is the incorrect handling of waste that causes, for example, the pollution of the oceans.

On this point, it is important to mention that the incorrect disposition of plastic materials prevents their recycling through the processes available in the market.

“A product pre-packed in plastic gives confidence to the consumer due to safety issues, in addition, for the personnel who collects the garbage, seeing a plastic bag containing the waste gives them security.”