Nestlé has launched the Nestlé Pure Life Eco Mission initiative in the United Arab Emirates on global Recycling Day, in partnership with Zeloop – a mobile phone app aimed at changing behavior which rewards users who proactively help protect the environment by depositing plastic bottles for recycling.
The first phase of the Eco Mission will run for seven weeks, aiming to collect more than 40,000 recyclable plastic bottles of any brand and to raise recycling awareness, by offering rewards to those who deposit plastic bottles at any of 1,200 mapped deposit spots in the UAE, with more specific information available online.
The Zeloop app, which is available on the App Store and Google Play, also allows users to record new deposit spots, earning various eco-points with each activity.
“We are working with stakeholders and industry peers to implement efficient recycling systems that will allow us to meet our commitment to collect as many bottles as we produce by 2030; and to increase the use of recycled content in our bottles,” said Matthias Riehle, Business Executive Officer, Nestlé Waters, Middle East and North Africa.
“We at ZeLoop are on a mission to bring together every individual on Earth in a mutual effort to reduce plastic littering and positively impact the health of our world, nature, and our fellow beings,” said Eric Schaffner, Zeloop Founder and CEO. “This is only possible with a new mindset and improved behavior, and we believe that everyone can contribute to this change.”
This announcement follows a series of specific initiatives and steps to accelerate plastic waste tackling, in line with Nestlé’s commitment to make 100% of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025.
A 2019 study conducted by the Coalition CIRCLE (Coalition of Innovation in Recycling towards a Closed Loop Economy) – a government-endorsed coalition in Abu Dhabi comprised of NGOs, global and private companies including Nestlé that is committed to tackling packaging waste pollution – had identified low awareness and poor recycling habits as hindrances to creating a full local circular economy.
Nestlé is aiming for a possible roll out of similar initiatives across the Middle East and North Africa, as it continues to play an active role in developing plastics collection, sorting, and recycling schemes across the world.
