Nigerian Breweries to Promote Community-led Plastic Recycling

By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel

The leading brewing company, Nigerian Breweries Plc, has launched a plastic recycling project tagged NB Recycles to promote community-led plastic recycling among staff as well as its host communities.

The project, which was officially unveiled at the Nigerian Breweries Head Office Iganmu, Lagos, was described as part of the company’s sustainability agenda tagged Brew a Better World (BaBW).

The initiative entails the setting up of various collection points in all nine brewery locations of Nigerian Breweries across the country as well as in respective host communities.

The NB Recycles project is being implemented in liaison with Wecyclers, a foremost waste recycler in Nigeria who will manage the collection, sorting, and recycling of all the plastic wastes brought in by employees and community members.

Thus, encouraging them to adopt the habit of recycling by returning all plastic bottles, aluminium cans, paper, cartons, nylon, and glass in exchange for monetary rewards.

Commenting on the launch, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mr Hans Essaadi, cited that the project is a demonstration of the company’s commitment towards environmental sustainability, specifically in matters of plastic recovery and recycling.

According to him, the employee-led recycling initiative is in line with the efforts of the Food and Beverages Recycling Alliance (FBRA), in creating a circular economy through the recycling of plastic waste.

Noting that the company contributes a minuscule percentage (5 per cent) of plastic waste in Nigeria, Mr Essaadi reiterated its commitment to increasing efforts involved in recycling plastic waste in the country.

In effect, the company has donated four recycling bins to the Ijora community in Lagos and has set up a collection point at its headquarters to tackle the menace of plastic waste in the area.

Meanwhile, the Corporate Affairs Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mrs Sade Morgan, had expressed appreciation towards the residents of the Ijora community in Lagos for their cooperation and encouragement towards the initiative.

She also thanked the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), the Lagos Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, and the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) for their constant support as stakeholders on environment-related issues.