THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: At Kochi-based startup Carbon & Whale, job titles come with a twist. The CEO is the chief eco officer, the COO is the chief zero officer and the CTO is the chief trash officer. They head the departments that aim to transform the state’s plastic waste crisis into a story of sustainability.
Working with school and college students as well as non-profit organisations, they collect plastic waste, sort it and transform it into durable products. Think benches that don’t rust and paver tiles stronger than concrete and plant pots that outlast the seasons. Many of these products now sit in metro stations and malls across Kerala and Bengaluru, thanks to partnerships with Kochi Metro, Kerala Tourism and the LuLu Group.
“Our aim is to transform single-use plastic into durable modular furniture with a lifespan of 15 to 20 years. We hope to convert 10 lakh kilograms of plastic waste into modular furniture, working with local communities, volunteers and partners to create cleaner surroundings,” says Siddharth A K, co-founder and CEO. For Siddharth, the journey began much before the startup took shape. Growing up in Delhi, he always wanted to return to his mother’s house in Thiruvananthapuram.
What excited him about Kerala were the beaches. Summers in the state capital were all about sandy feet, salty air and beach cleanups with his mother. Even after her passing, Siddharth found comfort in returning to those shores, picking up discarded plastic.
For him, it was never just about cleaning. It was about preserving something close to his heart. That personal journey grew into something much bigger in 2022. Along with Alvin George (COO) and Sooraj Varma (CTO), Siddharth founded Carbon & Whale. While the state generates about 450 tonnes of plastic every day much of it ends up choking its 590-km-long coastline. Siddharth and his team wanted to change that story.
The roots of Carbon & Whale lie in chance meetings. Siddharth spent years studying plastic’s potential, visiting research centres and experimenting with materials. He poured his savings into the venture, selling personal belongings to keep the project alive. Alvin and Sooraj brought their expertise, engineering and academic research, to strengthen the mission. Together they spent two years perfecting products that balance utility with sustainability.
In the initial stages, Siddharth met Sooraj Verma, a professor at the Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering & Technology (Cipet)--an autonomous institution devoted to plastic engineering and allied industries. The duo began experimenting with the composition of furniture pieces to be manufactured using plastic waste.
With early grants from the Kerala Startup Mission and the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC), the company scaled quickly. Annual revenue jumped from Rs 67,000 to Rs 4 crore. Since its launch, the company has prevented 12,000kg of plastic from reaching landfills and oceans. Looking ahead, Carbon & Whale wants to expand internationally. It also plans to make dustbins and public toilets, all crafted from recycled plastic, in the coming years.