Coca-Cola to eliminate 2,000 tonnes of new plastic in Vietnam annually

Starting in September 2022, all new 300ml bottles (excluding caps and labels) made from rPET plastic containing Coca-Cola and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar will help the company avoid using around 2,000 tonnes of new plastics across the country annually.

Coca-Cola to eliminate 2,000 tonnes of new plastic in Vietnam annually

“These bottles have value beyond their first use and can be used over and over again. Our new bottles made with food-grade rPET are recyclable, and can become another bottle in the future,” said Peeyush Sharma, CEO of Coca-Cola Beverages Vietnam Limited.

The safety of the new rPET plastic packaging has been thoroughly reviewed and complies with Vietnamese regulations and Coca-Cola’s global standards for food-grade rPET packaging. Coca-Cola has been mobilising a global “World Without Waste” vision to collect and recycle a bottle or can for every one it sells by 2030.

Leaders say it is not just about collecting and recycling bottles, however, but also about using less new plastic. As such, the company has a global goal to use at least 50 per cent recycled content in its packaging by 2030. The Coca-Cola Company now offers 100 per cent rPET bottles (excluding caps and labels) in more than 30 markets around the world.

Leonardo Garcia, general manager of Coca-Cola Vietnam and Cambodia said, “We want to ensure that all our bottles have more than one life, in support of a circular economy model in Vietnam. To achieve this, it is critical we have enough supply of food-grade recycled plastic to meet demand. This is why Coca-Cola Vietnam, together with our bottling partner, are also investing in the collection and recycling of PET plastic bottles.”

“While we still have a lot of work to do to help reduce plastic waste in Vietnam, by educating consumers about recycling and the potential for plastic bottles to become new plastic bottles, we see this as a big move in the right direction,” he added.

Raising awareness

To build awareness and encourage action on recycling, Coca-Cola rolled out a prominent “Recycle Me” message in 2021 across all its packaging in Vietnam. The Sprite brand also transitioned and replaced its iconic green bottles to clear packaging in Vietnam in order to give the bottles the best chance of another life.

Since 2018, Coca-Cola Vietnam has been working with partners such as the Centre for Supporting Green Development and other local recyclers to support and incentivise informal plastic waste collectors, who are the backbone of the recycling industry. With support from The Coca-Cola Foundation, the company has also been partnering with UNESCO in their programmes to raise community awareness and find innovative solutions for plastic waste management at Cu Lao Cham and Cat Ba islands since 2020.

Moreover, Coca-Cola Vietnam is one of the founding members of Packaging Recycling Organisation Vietnam – a partnership with other companies, recyclers, and government agencies – to accelerate local packaging collection and recycling to support a clean and green Vietnam.

“Coca-Cola Vietnam is one of the pioneering companies working to build a circular economy for packaging. It has been actively working with partners to support ways to collect and recycle their bottles so they can have another life,” said Phan Tuan Hung, director of Legal Affairs under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. “This is an ambitious goal and it shows the company’s readiness to deploy extended producer responsibility for plastic packaging.”

Coca-Cola Foundation funds plastic waste management project The Coca-Cola Foundation has announced funding for the "Plastic waste management in Can Gio based on the circular economy model” project led by GreenHub in collaboration with Can Gio People's Committee.