Unilever Pakistan has collected and recycled plastic waste equivalent to half (50%) of the plastic used in its operations annually. This has been achieved in a period of two years, as part of the ambition of becoming 100% plastic neutral by 2025.
Last year, Unilever Pakistan had pledged to recover, recycle and reuse 100% of the plastic generated through its operations by 2025. As part of this effort, the company partnered with stakeholders from the industry, government, and the development sector to eradicate plastic waste and invest in initiatives to reuse and repurpose plastic.
Amir Paracha, Chairman & CEO, Unilever Pakistan said on the occasion, “Protecting the world from the impact of climate change needs all of us to work collaboratively. Reducing the plastic footprint is just one aspect of this cause and one organization alone cannot turn the tide. We must work together to find innovative ways to amplify the impact of positive climate actions to create a greener, cleaner, and more prosperous world for everyone.”
The announcement was made as part of celebrations of World Environment Day 2022, where Unilever Pakistan announced the results of a recent partnership, titled ‘Dastan-e-Plastic’ with ISP Environmental Solutions for the collection of plastic waste in Lahore. The effort is part of a pilot project, collecting plastic waste from 5,440 households in Lahore. The project is expected to become self-sustaining by the end of 2022, and provides sustainable employment for 22 scavengers and 21 informal recyclers (kabaris).
On the day, Unilever Pakistan also signed an MoU with Sharmeen Polymers to use recycled plastic in the packaging material developed for Unilever products. The Research and Development team at Unilever Pakistan and Sharmeen Polymers are collaborating to develop Pakistan’s first shampoo bottle, using locally sourced recycled plastic. Unilever Pakistan is also a founding member of Pakistan’s first packaging alliance CoRe (Collect & Recycle), working to responsibly produce and recycle consumer plastic.
