Page 48 - Avendus Huran Flipbook 2026

Growing up in a family of active
entrepreneurs meant that the ‘seed’

of entrepreneurship was planted
very early for me.

AVANTIKA SARAOGI
Executive Director, Balrampur Chini Mills

When you were first asked to identify a new business
Sustainability as Strategy stream for the family group, what was the single moment
or insight that made you decide to focus on value-added,
Avantika Saraogi leads one of India’s most influential sustainability-led businesses instead of expanding purely in
sugar enterprises. As Executive Director, she is at sugar or ethanol?
the forefront of steering the company’s evolution The shift really began with a simple but striking realization
from a traditional sugar business into a future-facing that if we were looking for the next growth engine for the
platform for sustainable materials and value-added group, it had to be something that created value beyond
manufacturing. Rooted in a deep understanding of the traditional sugar cycle. The turning point came during
sugarcane as a renewable resource, Avantika has my early research into value-added opportunities from
been instrumental in shaping Balrampur Chini Mills sugarcane. I remember coming across a clear bottle that
Limited’s (BCML) pivot toward biopolymers, circularity looked exactly like PET, but with a simple line printed on
and green chemicals, including the company’s it: “I am made from sugarcane.” That moment stayed with
landmark investment in India’s first industrial-scale PLA me. It showed, in one powerful visual, how a traditional
biopolymer plant. agri-commodity like sugarcane could be transformed into a
next-generation, sustainable material.
Balancing legacy discipline with disruptive ambition, From there, the pathway became clearer. At Balrampur Chini
her leadership reflects a strong focus on farmer Mills, we have always believed sugarcane is more than a crop,
livelihoods, operational excellence and long-term value it’s a renewable resource with the potential to serve India’s
creation, redefining what a modern, sustainability-led sustainability ambitions. PLA, a plant-based and biodegradable
manufacturing company can look like. alternative to fossil-fuel plastics, aligned perfectly with this

46 | Uth Series 2025 • U35 Business Leaders