Sprite switches 'iconic' green plastic bottle to clear packaging

Coca-Cola Philippines leads an industry-first in the Philippines and in South East Asia

MANILA, Philippines – In a bid to help boost recycling of their plastic bottles, Coca-Cola Philippines announced today an industry-first initiative of evolving the iconic green color packaging of their Sprite recyclable plastic bottles for a clear, new look.
 
For half a century, people have known Sprite for its iconic green bottle that is as unique as its crisp, lemon-lime flavor. Now, the brand is switching its trademark design for the plastic bottles, one of its packaging formats, to a clear, new look — aligned with its clear, new mission toward a World Without Waste.

“Sprite’s status as one of the biggest and most recognized brands in the world can largely be attributed to its crisp lemon-lime taste and its iconic green bottle design. As part of our journey towards a World Without Waste, we are transitioning our green Sprite plastic bottles to clear ones as clear plastic is much easier to recycle,” shared Coca-Cola Philippines Marketing Director Sharon Garcia-Tanganco.
 
As one of the numerous brands offered by Coca-Cola Philippines, the transformation of Sprite recyclable plastic bottles from green to transparent bottles is part of the company’s World Without Waste goal of collecting and recycling the equivalent of every bottle or selling it by 2030. Colored recyclable plastics are harder to recycle and have much more limited use compared to clear plastics. Because of this, the transition of Sprite® to clear plastic packaging ensures that its bottles are easier recycled and reprocessed.
 
Tanganco added, “Sprite will continue to offer the refreshing lemon-lime drink in refillable green glass packaging, and recyclable aluminum cans. However, as we continue to look at the overall recyclability and usability of all our packaging materials, we saw the opportunity to transition the colored plastic bottle of one of our biggest brands to clear plastic bottle so it can be recycled and re-used by recyclers.”
 
With its 500ml bottles now made from 100% recycled plastic, Sprite is also leading the packaging innovation and redesign journey of the broader industry. This packaging milestone makes Sprite one of the first soft drinks in the Philippines and in Asia to introduce a bottle made from 100% recycled plastic. This innovation is also a move toward one of the cornerstones of the company’s global World Without Waste vision — to use at least 50% recycled content in their packaging by 2030.

To fully close the loop on their packaging, Coca-Cola Philippines also announced earlier this year that it is investing in what will be the country’s largest state-of-the-art bottle-to-bottle recycling facility.
 
“We recognize that packaging waste is an urgent issue — globally and here in the Philippines. As a company, we are determined to be part of the solution and we’re working to go further and faster in our actions, such as eliminating hard-to-recycle packaging from our portfolio,” Winn Everhart, Coca-Cola Philippines President and General Manager further added. “The journey towards our vision of World Without Waste is a long but possible one. By working with equally-passionate and like-minded organizations, we will continue to strive hard and go beyond towards achieving our goals.”
 
The clear plastic bottle transition of Sprite® in Southeast Asia was announced today during SEA of Solutions 2019, the first annual partnership week convened by SEA circular — an initiative from the UN Environment Programme and the Coordinating Body on the Seas of East Asia (COBSEA), with support from the Swedish Government. Held from November 11-14 at the UN Conference Centre in Bangkok, the conference brought together over 500 representatives from governments, business, academia, youth and community groups for a series of dialogues on plastic pollution solutions for Southeast Asia.

The Philippines is the largest Sprite market in ASEAN and the first market in ASEAN to begin the clear plastic bottle transition. The transition will expand to other markets in Southeast Asia through 2020.
 
To learn more about Sprite and The Coca-Cola Company’s wider goals and actions to address packaging waste, please visit: https://www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/world-without-waste.