That used to be a world miracle is now a certified nuisance—tons of plastic waste in varying size, from large containers, fishing nets to microscopic plastic pellets or even particles, are discarded every year, everywhere, polluting lands, rivers, coasts, beaches and oceans.
According to a scientific study published in the Journal Science in February 2015, at least 8 million metric tons of plastic end up in our oceans. It is equivalent to five grocery bags filled with plastic for every foot of coastline in the world. The cumulative input for 2025 would be nearly 20 times the 8 million metric tons estimate—100 bags of plastic per foot of coastline in the world!
As early as 2006, Greenpeace reported that at least 267 different animal species—from the whale, sea lions, and birds to the microscopic organisms called zooplankton—are known to have suffered from entanglement and ingestion of plastic debris. According to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, plastic debris kills an estimated 100,000 marine mammals annually, as well as millions of people birds and fishes.
This should not be the case as plastic was created to help mankind to eliminate the need to ransack the Earth in pursuit of substances, which are constantly growing scarcer, including plants and animals. The National Geographic said it all: “Since helping the allies win the Second World War—think of nylon parachutes or lightweight airplane parts—plastics have transformed all our lives as few other inventions have, mostly for the better. These have eased travel into space and revolutionized medicine; lightened every car and jumbo jet today, saving fuel—and pollution. In the form of clingy, light-as-air wraps, these extend the life of fresh food. In airbags, incubators, helmets or simply by delivering clean drinking water to poor people in those now demonized disposable bottles, plastics save lives daily.”
With the global movement to save Mother Earth, Nestlé reiterated its April 2018 commitment to make 100 percent of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025, with a particular focus on avoiding plastic waste.
The giant food company established in 2018 its Institute of Packaging Sciences to evaluate and develop various sustainable packaging materials, and collaborate with industrial partners to develop new packaging materials and solutions. Between 2020 and 2025 Nestlé said it will phase out all plastics that are not recyclable or are hard to recycle for all its products worldwide.
All 4,200 Nestlé facilities worldwide are committed to eliminating single-use plastic items that cannot be recycled. These items will be replaced by materials that can easily be recycled or reused. In the Philippines Nestlé has stepped up tangible moves to meet its target since 2018, with programs such as Balik Plastic, Premyong Fantastic sachet collection among its adopted public schools in Metro Manila, Cebu City; and Cagayan de Oro City and the internal sachet-collection drive called “SaCo” (Sachet Collection) among its factories and offices. Collected sachets were turned over to GreenAntz for eco-brick production.
Ongoing local initiatives to promote better solid waste management and support its drive towards zero waste include packaging reduction with an annual target of packaging material reduction by 1,000 metric tons, or 1 million kilograms, of packaging materials.
Collection and Recycling of used packaging include the eco-brick project that will convert laminates to eco-bricks and pavers with hubs in Cabuyao, Laguna, Cagayan de Oro City, Cauayan City, Isabela and Baliwag, Bulacan.
Nestlé collaborated with the Department of Education (DepEd) and Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) to convert Bear Brand packs into school chairs called “Tibay Chairs” intended for donation to schools in need.
The company also initiated collection of used beverage cartons from chocolate drinks and recycled them into paper, some of which are used as product promo sleeves for product bundles. The recycled paper products should be out in the market starting in January.
Aside from its existing programs, Nestlé initiated partnership with companies and industry associations, government and NGOs, academe and recyclers through the Philippine Alliance for Recycling and Material Sustainability (PARMS). The group has launched a plastic-waste recovery program in seven pilot schools and their communities, in cooperation with the Parañaque City Community Environment and Natural Resources Office and DepEd. This is in preparation for the plastics recycling infrastructure that PARMS will set up in Parañaque City within the year, for sachets collection and upcycling.