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As one of the biggest consumer brands in the country, Coca-Cola Beverages Philippines has many sustainability initiatives ongoing, particularly the establishment of the country’s first bottle recycling facility. We talked to the company’s director for corporate and regulatory affairs, Atty. Juan Lorenzo Tañada, and director for stakeholder relations, Atty. Marc Cox.

Why did Coca-Cola feel it necessary to take this step?

JLT: CCBPI fully recognizes that packaging waste is a major and growing problem all over the world – and we have a significant role in being part of the solution. We have a vast national footprint: we operate 19 plants and over 70 distribution cewnters; employ 10,000 employees; support over one million sari-sari stores and about 6,000 key accounts. With its footprint and people-driven operations, CCBPI has always been committed to operating the right way and not just the easy way.

In January 2018, we announced our World Without Waste (WWW) vision, our renewed focus on our entire packaging lifecycle – from how bottles and cans are designed and produced, to how they’re recycled and repurposed. Our global vision is our commitment to collect and recycle the equivalent of every bottle and can we sell by 2030, to make all our packaging 100% recyclable, and to integrate an average of 50% recycled content in our packaging.

MC: In March 2020, we announced our joint venture agreement with Indorama Ventures, a global leader in green technology and packaging solutions, to establish a PHP 2.28 billion multi-phased bottle-to-bottle recycling facility in the Philippines. In December 2020, the Board of Investments granted pioneer status to the facility – a recognition of the facilities’ most advanced and world-class technologies that have never been used in the country.

What cost savings does Coca-Cola predict to make as it further invests in recycling?

MC: PETValue’s projected capacity is around 30,000 metric tons, which is equivalent to approximately two billion pieces of plastic bottles during its first three years of operations, and three billion for phase 2. PETValue will be employing the safest, most advanced, and world-class recycling technologies for PET plastic bottles – a proven technology not just in ASEAN but globally. Moreover, this facility will generate over 200 green jobs.

JLT: Specific to packaging innovations such as lightweighting, we are using less virgin plastics in our packaging and maintain the same quality and shelf life of our products. To date, we have reduced our use of virgin plastic resin by approximately 10,000 metric tons – this is anywhere between 17-25% per pack type, and we continue to look at ways to reduce as we move forward.

Is the PETValue facility going to be exclusive for Coca-Cola products?

MC: No. PETValue will be recycling PET bottles regardless of brand, as long as they are clear.

PETValue is the first in the Philippines to use a proprietary and state of the art eight-step recycling process that will transform used PET bottles back into food-grade recycled PET resins, which can then be processed to make new bottles again – that the material can safely go back into the value chain to be used over and over again.

A challenge in recycling in the Philippines is the lack of infrastructure that supports the whole process. How can we make recycling more accessible and attractive for everyone?

JLT: We continue to bring people together to support a healthy, debris-free environment, all made possible through our partners, people, and communities. With this, we ensure that our collection programs for PETValue reaches the customers and communities we serve.

Tapon to Ipon: Basta Klaro, Panalo! is CCBPI’s plastic bottle collection program in collaboration with various stakeholders such as private partners and local government units across the country. We focus our campaign on raising awareness on the recyclability of clear PET bottles as packaging that is not single use and can be given new life. This puts us at the forefront of sustainable packaging, as we have studied the gaps on the collection and recycling in the country – one of which is the lack of awareness of what’s recyclable versus what’s single use.

Its IGNITION phase involves brangay level activations wherein we work closely with local government units, City Environment & Natural Resources Offices, and communities to collect used clear PET bottles in exchange for Coke products and raise awareness on Tapon to Ipon.
Through our program, traditional trade outlets or sari-sari stores become collection hubs where community members can deposit their used clear plastic bottles – any brand as long as they are clear – and get incentives in return. This becomes an additional revenue stream for sari-sari store owners as they are also incentivized through the collection program.

A sustainable and profitable route-to-market model is established from consumer to Tapon to Ipon hubs to PETValue – a circular model for clear post-consumer plastic bottles.

What other initiatives are planned to fulfill Coca-Cola’s commitments to environmental sustainability?

JLT: Over the years, we have delivered strongly on all our sustainability commitment – water replenishment, energy efficiency and climate action, women empowerment, to name a few. We are confident that we will be able to do the same as we work toward making a World Without Waste a reality.

We have estimated that 132% of the water used in our finished beverages and their production was replenished in nature and communities in 2020, 65% renewable energy are used in operations, 10,000 metric tons in resin and plastic are reduced, and we have 14,000 solar panels installed in manufacturing sites.

All of our primary packaging materials are already 100% recyclable. In 2019, we transitioned our iconic Sprite packaging from green to clear PET bottles, which chart higher in recyclability. In September 2021, we announced our exit from the sachet business. Integrating the use of more recycled material in our packaging, in 2019, we launched a beverage in a bottle made from 100% recycled content – a first in the country.

Moreover, to demonstrate our commitment to environmental protection, since 2019 we have been inking partnerships with local government units to lend a tractor and barber surf rake to four municipalities – Boracay, Baler, San Vicente and Siargao – for the regular cleaning of their famed beaches.

Finally, we are working with various local government units to help strengthen their waste management systems.

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