“We create solutions”
Almannai, driver for rPET bottles in Kuwait
Interview with Almannai Plastics // September 23, 2024
We met: Yousef Al-Mannai,
Founder at Almannai Plastics
Photo top: Almannai Plastics has earned a reputation for producing high quality PET preforms and closures using state of the art Husky systems
Founder at Almannai Plastics
Actually, this could have been a completely normal story of a converter. Almannai has been producing water preforms on two Husky HyPET systems since 2015 and caps on Husky HyCAP systems since 2018, mainly for the local market. Normal, that is, if it weren’t for Yousef Almannai, who is always looking for new ideas. In his opinion, sustainability in the bottle sector is not just about optimising weight, but also about using rPET in preform production. He sees no other way of producing the PET bottle in an environmentally friendly way. He trialled the production of a 100% rPET bottle with the local Pepsi-Cola people in multiple formats (200 ml, 330 ml, 500 ml, and 1.5 L). The result was good: no grey or yellow haze, a clear neck finish. He posted the bottle without a label on LinkedIn, with hashtags of all internationally known water brands.
Hardly was it online when Pepsi got in touch. At first they were surprised that he had publicised the small internal project so widely. The story reached senior management and they decided to give it a try after all. The Aquafina bottles went into production in 2022, and the fear that consumers would only drink water from virgin material bottles was groundless. The Husky lines for the bottles are now running at 5,000 t/a rPET. There is still no collection or even processing of PET bottles in Kuwait, so Almannai has to import the rPET from various countries. To ensure that the quality remains the same, the acetaldehyde content is low and transparency is guaranteed, all rPET batches at Almannai undergo extensive tests in their own laboratory. Only when all values are correct does the batch go into production.
The next step will be to produce the CSD preforms for Pepsi also in rPET to other beverage and FMCG brands throughout the MENA region. “If it works with sensitive water, it should be even more possible with CSD products, which have a more stable flavour,” believes Almannai. However, with Pepsi in Kuwait, the production capacity of its Husky systems with 72-cavity moulds is not fully utilised. So he is looking around for other partners who need rPET bottles. He has set his sights on international airlines such as Kuwait Airways and Qatar Airways. If they serve Europe, they must use rPET bottles to meet EU directives with 25% rPET by 2025. And so he is pleased that he does not sell preforms, but solutions for companies.