Bavaria, Coca-Cola Company, Coca-Cola FEMSA, Postobon and PepsiCo announced the launch of the RE Movement in Barranquilla, Cartagena and Santa Marta: a joint initiative of these companies that seeks to optimize the collection and recycling of materials that can be used after consumption – mainly PET bottles – through training and communication campaigns and reinforcement and dignification schemes for about 300 recycler and their cooperatives in the region.
Contribuir a la cultura de la separación, mejorar las condiciones en las que se hace la recolección por parte de los recicladores de base, así como apoyar la comercialización del material recuperado, incrementará las tasas de recuperación y aprovechamiento de envases y empaques posconsumo lo que conlleva un gran beneficio en ciudades altamente turísticas y potencialmente comerciales por sus puertos marítimos, como son Barranquilla, Santa Marta y Cartagena y que tienen más de 2,5 millones de habitantes.
Over the next 18 months, companies will seek to increase the rate of PET collection in the region by 30%, that is 1,200 tons of PET (more than 36 million bottles) in addition to those already collected in the Colombian Caribbean. Contributing to the culture of separation, improving the conditions in which the collection is done by the recyclers and supporting the commercialization of the recovered material, increase the rates of recovery and use of packaging and post-consumption packaging, which entails a great benefit in highly tourist and potentially commercial cities for its maritime ports, such as Barranquilla, Santa Marta and Cartagena and that have more than 2.5 million inhabitants.
“The Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development estimates that in Colombia only about 17% of potentially usable waste is recovered. The Re Movement makes us pioneers by launching a model of circular economy and shared responsibility that articulates actors and promotes the culture of citizenship around the collection of waste”, said Juan Carlos Gutierrez, Manager of EKORED and selected operator to execute the project in partnership with RECIMED.
In Barranquilla, Santa Marta and Cartagena, it will be the citizens who will separate the PET bottles correctly, becoming the protagonists of this initiative. For this the “Movimiento Re” contemplates a communication and awareness plan with forceful messages and activations on the importance of making an adequate disposition of the waste, so that the recyclers can make their work more dignified and efficient.
The companies that are part of the ‘Movimiento Re’, to this day generate around sixty thousand job opportunities per year. Aware that in its value chain there is a great opportunity for the creation of new jobs and the dignification and formalization of those already existing in the recycling sector, the project will invest in improving the quality of life of 100 recycler per city, providing them with better routes, appropriate work elements and development in their competences. The initiative also aims to strengthen the organizational structure of the cooperatives and associations to which they belong, to promote the use and marketing of PET bottles and other materials.
The company ENKA de Colombia, an ally of the project, will guarantee the purchase of all the collected PET to incorporate it into its transformation processes, through which it produces resins to manufacture food grade bottles. Additionally, strategic allies will be sought for the collection and transformation of other materials such as cardboard, glass and cans, among others.
“Nowadays, in Colombia, beverage companies have already incorporated an average of 35% of recycled materials in their packaging. We believe that if we work together we can ensure that bottles do not reach landfills, much less ecosystems. We also believe that we can develop a circular economy that allows us to increase this figure, taking advantage of the fact that we have the technology to manufacture 100% PET containers with recycled resin”, said Álvaro Hincapié, President of ENKA of Colombia.
‘Movimiento Re’ has been created to unite all sectors of society around a purpose of great importance, as do these companies that are naturally competitive in the market, for the common welfare of our planet and the care of ecosystems.
About FEMSA
FEMSA is a company that generates economic and social value through companies and institutions and seeks to be the best employer and neighbor of the communities where it has a presence. It participates in retail trade through FEMSA Comercio, which includes the Proximity Division and of which OXXO, a chain of small format stores, is a part of. It also has a Health Division that includes pharmacies and related activities as well as a Fuel Division that operates the service stations chain, OXXO Gas. In the beverage industry it operates Coca-Cola FEMSA, public bottler of Coca-Cola products; in the beer sector, it is a shareholder of HEINEKEN, a company present in more than 70 countries. Additionally, through FEMSA Negocios Estratégicos, it offers logistics services, point-of-sale refrigeration solutions and plastics solutions to FEMSA companies and external clients. Through its Business Units, it employs approximately 300 thousand employees in 13 countries. FEMSA is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability MILA Pacific Alliance Index, the FTSE4Good Emerging Index and the Mexican Stock Exchange Sustainable IPC, among other indices that evaluate its performance in sustainability.
About Coca Cola FEMSA
Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. is the largest franchise bottler in the world by sales volume. The company produces and distributes trademark beverages of The Coca-Cola Company, offering a wide portfolio of 169 brands to more than 396 million consumers daily. With over 100 thousand employees, the company markets and sells approximately 4 billion unit cases through 2.8 million points of sale a year. Operating 67 manufacturing plants and 363 distribution centers, Coca-Cola FEMSA is committed to generating economic, social, and environmental value for all of its stakeholders across the value chain. The company is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability Emerging Markets Index, Dow Jones Sustainability MILA Pacific Alliance Index, FTSE4Good Emerging Index, and the Mexican Stock Exchange’s IPC and Social Responsibility and Sustainability Indices, among others. Its operations encompass franchise territories in Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, and Guatemala and, nationwide, in the Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Uruguay and Venezuela through its investment in KOF Venezuela. For more information, please visit www.coca-colafemsa.com.
