Holiday drinking? How to donate your empty glass bottles for upcycling
MANILA, Philippines — Diageo, the makers of some of the most popular liquors in the world including Johnnie Walker, Singleton, Tanqueray, and Baileys, has just launched its first-of-its-kind glass bottle collection initiative in the Philippines.
This is in line with Diageo’s Society 2030: Spirit of Progress, the company’s 10-year Environment, Society and Governance (ESG) action plan to help create a more inclusive and sustainable world.
The idea is to encourage people to donate empty glass bottles in their possession, including but not limited to Diageo’s liquor brands, to reduce waste, promote positive drinking, champion inclusion and diversity, and pioneer grain-to-glass sustainability.
”Our Spirit of Progress underpins everything we do, and that means doing the right thing the right way for our business, people, society and the environment. We have a responsibility to preserve the natural resources available for us now and for the future generations,” said Rajesh Joshi, general manager of Diageo Philippines.
The new program, aptly called Diageo Harmony, is aimed at promoting recycling as a way to put us back in harmony with ourselves, with others, and with the environment.
To encourage consumers to participate in this sustainable recycling initiative, the company has decided to give rewards to those who will donate any clean and empty Diageo and generic food and beverage bottles. Rewards include premium Diageo merchandise and drink stubs.
“It is our mission in Diageo to grow sustainably in a way that benefits the environment and the communities. We have come a long way, and we will continue to make significant strides to make our packaging more sustainable, to eliminate waste from our value chain, and to create more innovative solutions to achieve a more circular economy,” said Paul Guzman, the supply chain director of Diageo Philippines.
Diageo thus kicked off its pilot glass bottle collection drive in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) recently, with seven collection sites located in De Jesus Oval, Essensa (21st Drive), Maridien (27th Drive), 10th corner 25th, Burgos Circle, McKinley Hill Information Center, and near Landers BGC.
Diageo takes pride in being the first alcoholic beverage company in the Philippines to roll out a consumer glass collection and recycling campaign in the market. For this program, the company will be working closely with Basic Environmental Systems and Technologies, Inc. (BEST), a waste collection company, to leverage its waste collection program. It has San Miguel Yamamura Glass Recycling Facility as its recycling partner.
The initiative is part of Diageo’s ambitious but doable plan to reduce by 10% the impact of its total 2023 volumes by offsetting the total volume of glass bottle collection and the total imported weight. The alcoholic beverage giant also wants to heighten the focus on collecting and recycling post-consumer glass bottles, which are in fact higher valued items that support the informal economy.
Aside from scaling down environmental impact, the program also signifies Diageo’s continued commitment to being a responsible manufacturer that strictly complies with the government’s existing rules on waste management. Diageo is committed to becoming net zero carbon across its direct operation, reducing supply chain emissions by 50%, and using 100% renewable energy across all direct operations by 2030 or sooner.
Drop off, pick-up schedule
Here is the schedule of when to drop off donations of empty glass bottles at the drop-off points in BGC. Donors need to fill up their Diageo passport sticker cards with stickers that they will receive upon every visit (with a donation of at least five clean and empty food and beverage glass bottles) so that they may be able to redeem their rewards.
These collection centers are open every Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday only, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday
8 a.m. to 12 noon: De Jesus Oval
1 p.m. to 3 p.m.: Essensa (21st Drive)
3 p.m to 5 p.m.: Maridien (27th)
Sunday
8 a.m. to 12 noon: 10th corner 25th
1 p.m. to 5 p.m.: Burgos Circle
Friday to Sunday
8 a.m. to 5 p.m.: McKinley Hill Information Center
Monday
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.: near Landers
