Nestlé Philippines is switching from plastic to paper straws for its ready-to-drink (RTD) products – a move that will eliminate 130 metric tons of plastic straws by end of the year. The first of its kind and scale in the country, Nestlé’s paper straw shift is targeted to be completed by yearend. The shift is part of its global commitment to make 100 percent of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025.
“As the world’s largest food and beverage company, Nestlé envisions a waste-free future in which none of our packaging, particularly plastic, ends up in landfills, the oceans, or as litter. Shifting to paper straws is a critical step towards plastic neutrality, and one of many we are taking to address the urgent, and at the same time complex, plastics challenge,” said Nestlé Philippines chairman and CEO Kais Marzouki.
RTD brands Chuckie, Bear Brand, Nescafe and MILO already utilize the paper straws in the 180ml and 200ml portion packs, while the 110ml and 250ml packs are currently in the pipeline for transition.
The newly-developed bended paper straws are of food-grade quality and made without plastic or wax, which makes them fully recyclable. Several tests were made to ensure quality of paper straws so that they can withstand soaking in beverage for one hour. With the transition to paper straws, the company now has in place a responsible sourcing program that ensures suppliers practice responsible forest management.
“In developing alternative materials, in this case papers straws, we are reducing our use of plastics, particularly components that are hard to recycle and litter-prone,” said Nestlé Philippines senior vice president and business executive officer for Lifestyle Beverages and Confectionary Joey Uy.
“We want to ensure that our RTD products are packaged safely, and we enjoin our consumers to take part in our waste-free journey by committing to choose sustainable products and disposing of them properly,” he said.
Driven by its deep commitment to look at every option in solving the complex challenge of plastic waste, Nestlé embraces multiple solutions that have an immediate and future impact. Nestlé’s approach focuses on three areas of work: developing the packaging for the future; helping to shape a waste-free future; and driving new behavior and understanding.
“A waste-free future can be realized and we are determined to do our share, by finding innovative packaging solutions that will continue to uphold food safety while protecting our environment,” Marzouki said, “We urge our consumers to join us in this quest as they play a big part in helping us achieve this vision. By working together, we can help address the plastics challenge that we all face.”