Cigarette toys | India

No ifs and butts! We met the Indian company recycling millions of cigarette butts into toys and much more. Nangli, a suburban village near India’s capital Delhi. Here, a social enterprise has come up with a solution to manage perhaps one of the most littered items in the world, cigarette butts. Code Effort started by Naman Gupta is India’s first and only cigarette waste management company and has recycled more than 500 million cigarette butts since they began operations in September 2018.
About seven million cigarette butts are recycled each month here at Code Effort and the processes are streamlined. They have also roped in at least 100 women from the village, generating employment in their efforts.
First, cigarette filters made of polymer, paper and tobacco are pulled apart. The plastic parts are dumped into this industrial grinder. Once shredded, the filters are soaked in a biodegradable solution that cleans and renews the polymer for up to 36 hours.
The treated fiber is by now free of harmful toxins and it is then dried. To bring the fiber back to its original state, the dried fiber is fluffed and carded. It is then used as filling for toys, cushions and key chains to complete the process of upcycling.