Chinese firm to recycle Savar tannery solid waste, produce gelatine, industrial protein powder
It aims to export around 5,000 tonnes of these products annually to China and Russia
Highlights:
- Chinese firm recycling tannery waste into exportable gelatine, protein powder
- Factory in Savar targets China, Russia for product exports
- Products replace imports, aiding pharmaceuticals and leather industries
- MoU signed to collect chrome shaving dust for processing
- Project improves waste management, key to LWG certification
- Initiative curbs pollution, prevents toxic waste misuse in feed
In a bid to tackle the large volumes of solid waste generated by tanneries in the Savar Tannery Industrial Estate, a Chinese company has initiated a project to recycle the waste into 100% export-oriented products.
The company, Bangladesh JW Animal Protein Co Ltd, has already set up a factory in Savar to produce gelatine and now plans to expand its operations to manufacture both gelatine and industrial protein powder from tannery waste. The company is owned by China's Wenzhou Yuanfei and Pingyang.
According to company officials, industrial protein powder will primarily be used to soften finished leather, while gelatine is used to make the coating of pharmaceutical capsules – products that are currently imported by local industries.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
As per its business plan, the company aims to export around 5,000 tonnes annually of gelatine and industrial protein powder to China and Russia. Established in 2023, the Chinese firm is the first and only foreign-invested enterprise in Bangladesh to manufacture these two high-value products from leather waste.
On 8 April, the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Dhaka Tannery Industrial Estate Waste Treatment Plant Company Ltd (DTIEWTPCL) to facilitate the collection and processing of tannery waste for production.
Speaking to The Business Standard, Golam Shahnewaz, managing director of the Dhaka Tannery Industrial Estate Waste Treatment Plant Company, said, "JW Animal Protein will gradually collect all the chrome shaving dust from the tannery estate. They are setting up a factory equipped with an Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) on nine acres of land in Nayarhat, Savar."
The waste treatment plant company was formed to manage the Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP), water treatment facilities, and solid waste within the Savar Tannery Industrial Estate. It is also responsible for ensuring compliance with the standards required for obtaining Leather Working Group (LWG) certification.
Innovation in processing
Shahnewaz noted, "This factory is extracting gelatine from raw hide trimmings and converting it into capsule covers. It also plans to separate chrome from chrome shaving dust to produce protein powder. The company has already received clearance from the Bangladesh Food Safety Authority."
He called the initiative a major milestone for the government's tannery waste management efforts, adding that in the past, chrome shaving dust was often illegally diverted into the poultry and fish feed supply chain, allowing harmful chromium to enter the human body through meat and fish.
Management challenges
Each year, tanneries in the Savar estate produce an estimated 8,000 to 9,000 tonnes of chrome shaving dust. Although tanneries were relocated from Hazaribagh to Savar in 2017, waste management has remained a longstanding challenge.
While liquid waste is treated through the Central Effluent Treatment Plant before being discharged into the Dhaleshwari River, there has been no effective mechanism for handling solid waste, which has long been dumped openly along riverbanks, contributing to pollution.
This open dumping has also become a major barrier to achieving LWG certification, a globally recognised standard for sustainable leather production. Out of a total 1,710 marks needed for the certification, 150 marks are allocated to waste management – an area in which local tanneries consistently fall short.
"If JW Animal Protein Company takes responsibility for part of the waste, and a new project handles the rest, we'll finally have a long-awaited solution," Shahnewaz said. "This would be a major step forward in achieving compliance."
Export focus
Parvez Khan, an official at JW Animal Protein, said, "We aim to produce 100% export-oriented products by processing leather waste. Gelatine and protein powder will be produced from wet blue leather scraps and chrome shaving dust."
"The gelatine will be used to make capsule covers, which are in high demand globally. That's the market we are targeting with this factory. The protein powder will be reused in leather processing to soften leather, reducing the need for imports."
He added, "Unprocessed waste not only harms the environment, but some dishonest actors have been using it to produce animal feed, allowing toxic elements like chromium to enter the food chain. With proper processing, we can stop this misuse and reduce both environmental and health risks."
