Hong Kong-based sustainable materials firms eyeing plastic waste reduction in city struggle to scale up

Two Hong Kong-based sustainable materials firms, Weplastic and FMC Manufacturing, are striving to contribute to the city's efforts to reduce plastic waste. However, they are encountering difficulties in expanding their business models. Weplastic, established earlier this year, aims to decrease the volume of waste directed to Hong Kong's landfills by repurposing collected plastic. Isaac Ma, the co-founder of Weplastic, views plastic not as waste, but as a valuable resource.

Weplastic operates a compounding facility in Hong Kong, capable of recycling 200 tonnes of polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) flakes monthly. These flakes are transformed into rPET granules, which are then upcycled into various products for sale. The granules can also be marketed through the company's existing global sales channels. In 2021, Hong Kong's daily landfill contribution included 2,331 tonnes of plastic waste, accounting for the second-largest portion of the city's municipal solid waste at 20. 5%.

Scaling up the business presents challenges, particularly in terms of capital investment required for maintaining inventory. According to Ma, a scalable business necessitates at least three months of inventory, which demands significant capital investment. Despite these challenges, the business remains profitable, with their materials meeting global standards due to technical expertise from Switzerland. Through Ma's business partner, Thomas Schori, founder of Switzerland-based #tide ocean material, Weplastic can access technical support from the Swiss University of Applied Science.