Nestlé Philippines partners with PCEx to increase plastic collection

Nestlé Philippines has partnered with Plastic Credit Exchange (PCEx) to increase the collection of soft plastic waste from several sites in the Philippines.

The partnership will see Nestlé Philippines support PCEx in its collection of waste from Baseco in Tondo, Manila; Payatas in Quezon City; and Rodriguez in Rizal province. The waste will reportedly be co-processed and diverted from landfill sites.

Soft plastic waste includes packaging such as grocery bags, bread bags and plastic wrappers used for snack products such as biscuits or crisps/chips.

This latest initiative falls under Nestlé Philippines’ plastic waste collection, recycling, and recovery programme, and the company claims that the partnership is a step towards reducing its plastic footprint.

Nestlé Philippines chairman and CEO Kais Marzouki, said: “With plastic waste continuing to accumulate in landfills and oceans, the need for tackling plastic pollution has never been so pressing. It is an urgent priority for us and an issue we take seriously.

“We are determined to look at every option to solve complex packaging challenges and embrace multiple solutions that can have an impact now. For our part, we at Nestlé envision a waste-free future in the face of these complex challenges. We are glad to be taking a concrete step, one among many, toward realizing that vision through our partnership with PCEx.”

Philippines-based non-profit organisation PCEx is an offshoot of Hope in a Bottle, a bottled water brand that commits 100% of its profits to the building of public school classrooms in partnership with the country’s Department of Education.

Nanette Medved-Po, founder and president of PCEx, added: “The journey of HOPE to sustainability – and therefore to the Plastic Credit Exchange – in a way, started with Nestlé.

“Years ago, their Philippine CEO reached out to me about projects that Nestlé was supporting – like eco-bricks. From there, HOPE began to explore environmentally sustainable and affordable ways for companies to be responsible for their plastic footprints.

“In 2019 we established the Plastic Credit Exchange from our learnings and came back to Nestlé whom we felt would be a natural partner, given our common goals for sustainability.”