CONSUMERS COLLECT MORE THAN HALF A MILLION WASTE PLASTIC BOTTLES AND CANS IN TWO MONTHS

As part of the pilot project to collect beverage packaging waste under the slogan “Recycle me. Give me a new life”, consumers collected half a million waste plastic bottles and cans of beverages at collection points in selected Mercator hypermarkets over a two-month period. The project ran from 17 September to 12 November this year, and tested the readiness of consumers in Slovenia to adopt a deposit-refund system to make the separate collection of plastic bottles and cans more efficient and thus contribute to a cleaner environment.

Coca-Cola HBC Slovenia, as part of the global World Without Waste program, is looking for solutions to packaging challenges. In order to co-create a zero-waste environment, the company has designed a pilot project in Slovenia in cooperation with Mercator to collect waste beverage packaging under the “Recycle me. Give me a new life.” slogan to address any inappropriate waste disposal.

Consumer response to the project has been amazing, says Bruno Jelić, Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Direcotr at Coca-Cola HBC Adria: “At Coca-Cola HBC, we believe that keeping a clean and waste-free environment is a shared responsibility. As a leading beverage company in the field of sustainable business, we consider this an important step towards achieving our environmental goals is the proper disposal of waste. That’s why we are delighted with the response of Slovenian consumers to our project Recycle Me. Give me a new life”. By collecting beverage packaging at the point of sale, we have worked with consumers to reclaim it and turn it into raw materials, which is the basic idea of the circular economy. We thank all consumers and partners, led by Mercator, who have recognized the importance of this project.”

In the period from 17 September to 12 November, 19,276 consumers collected 521,466 waste cans and bottles of any beverage brand at collection points in 15 Mercator hypermarkets. This represents 302 pallets or 10.3 tonnes of primary packaging waste. As a reward for good packaging collection practice, consumers received a voucher for points on all nine Saturdays during the project period. When redeemed, the points were credited to their Mercator Pika loyalty card. They also received a voucher to enter a prize draw to win one of 15 electric scooters. Winners will be announced soon at https://www.mercator.si/projekti/recikliraj-me/.

Throughout the project, Slopak ensured that the collected beverage packaging waste was properly managed. In cooperation with the Olympic Committee of Slovenia – Association of Sports Federations (OKS – ZŠZ), packaging waste will be brought to life in the form of a victory stage for the Olympic Festival of European Youth (OFEM 2023).

Read more about the project and the prize draw at https://bit.ly/3ePHbzO