Bottles Returned, Bottles Reborn: Coca-Cola® Launches 100% Recycled Plastic Bottles in Hong Kong

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 8 April 2024 – “With every 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola® Trademark beverages you enjoy, you can contribute to helping move towards World Without Waste – one bottle at a time!” Tim Warwick, Vice President of Operations for Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau and Mongolia at The Coca-Cola Company, commented as the company debuted the 500ml Coca-Cola® Trademark brands in 100% rPET (recycled plastic)* bottles, the first-ever Coca-Cola® Trademark packaging made from 100% rPET* in Hong Kong.

All 500ml Coca-Cola® Original, Coca-Cola® No Sugar and Coca-Cola® Plus have now adopted 100% rPET* in the production of their bottles. The new packaging features “I’m a 100% rPET* bottle” and “Recycle Me Again” messages to build recycling awareness and encourage action among consumers. “This is the latest effort from Coca-Cola Hong Kong, a pioneer in rethinking our beverage packaging to make it more sustainable. To support The Coca-Cola Company’s World Without Waste strategy, we have been taking a bold, innovative approach to sustainability and are now doubling down on our rPET packaging effort to help drive our sustainability agenda forward,” Warwick continued.

Over the years, in partnership with industry associations and other organizations, including Drink Without Waste and industry peers, the Coca-Cola system in Hong Kong has been supporting consumer education and community collection programs to help enable beverage packaging recycling. In collaboration with Drink Without Waste, the Coca-Cola system in Hong Kong is investing HK$3 million in 2024 to support a new neighborhood collection scheme by mobilizing participating housing estates, their cleaners and the resident households to build a recycling habit and mechanism. Each resident in Hong Kong is invited to separate and recycle plastic bottles to help build a plastic bottle “recycling loop”!

“We continue to engage proactively to help drive collective action, working with all key stakeholders to invest in recycling innovation, facilities, organizations and initiatives. In Hong Kong, the Coca-Cola system is a strong enabler of a local circular economy for plastic,” Hunter Jin, Chief Executive Officer, Swire Coca-Cola SEAHKT Operations (Southeast Asia, Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan markets), said: “One prime example is the significant investment we have been making in New Life Plastics, Hong Kong’s first food-grade-ready plastic recycling facility. It will have sufficient capacity to recycle each PET bottle we sell by 2030 as part of our World Without Waste ambitions.”

“Our packaging is our biggest, most visible billboard. We have been using the power of our brands, leading with Coca‑Cola® and bonaqua®, to educate, inspire and advance our sustainability priorities,” Marella Canepa Risso, Franchise Operations Director, Hong Kong and Macau at The Coca-Cola Company, said: “The introduction of our iconic Coca-Cola® Trademark brands in 100% rPET* bottles is an important step in our journey to showcase how recycling can help speed up a circular economy.”

This rollout further enhances the company’s commitment to a sustainable future in Hong Kong, following an array of bold yet solid sustainability actions in recent years, including:

· The rPET journey commenced in 2019, when a variety of Coca-Cola brands started using rPET content in the production of bottles.

· Since 2020, all locally produced bonaqua® water bottles (2L or below) use 100% rPET*. bonaqua® sparkling water launched in recent months has also adopted this sustainable format.

· Each bonaqua® 500ml bottle weighs 11.8g – 52.8% lighter than a typical PET bottle in the market** – helping to achieve 29% less overall CO₂ emissions compared with other water brands***.

· In 2020, Sprite® made a bold transition to transparent bottles to enhance bottle recyclability. The effort continues with the recent adoption of transparent bottles by Schweppes® sparkling water.

· To help reduce plastic use, bonaqua® has been placing nearly 170 Water Stations across the city and advocating “bring your own bottle”.

· In 2021, bonaqua® launched its first label-less bottled water, further reducing packaging waste and improving recyclability through game-changing packaging design.

· In 2022, Coca-Cola Hong Kong reintroduced the Returnable Glass Bottles line encompassing key brands such as Coca-Cola®, Coca-Cola® No Sugar, Sprite®, Fanta® and Schweppes®.

· In 2022, bonaqua® launched its first label-less bottled water for individual sale, making it available to a broader range of customers.

· In 2023, bonaqua® rolled out water in Returnable Glass Bottles, inviting like-minded hotel industry players to join the sustainability effort.

“As one of the largest Coca-Cola® bottlers in the world, we continue to leverage our expertise and develop new manufacturing technologies to offer consumers even more environmentally friendly beverage packaging choices that promote a circular economy. We weave sustainability into the fabric of our endeavors, from design, sourcing, production to product delivery. It is our mission to contribute to a more sustainable way of living,” Connie Yeung, Director and General Manager of Swire Coca-Cola Hong Kong, shared: “Bottles Returned; Bottles Reborn. Used PET bottles can be given a new life – again and again – if returned and recycled properly. We encourage our consumers to become aware of their recycling habits – and to change them if necessary – thus partnering with us in helping to build a World Without Waste.”

To learn more about Coca-Cola® in 100% rPET* bottles, customers can contact the Swire Coca-Cola HK Customer Service hotline at +852 2210 3888, or purchase the products via the current distribution channels and Swire Coca-Cola HK eShop (www.swirecocacolahk.com).

*Excluding caps and labels.

**bonaqua®’s 500 ml bottle weighs 11.8g, which is lighter than the typical PET bottle found in the market, which weighs 18-32g. (Source: New Life Plastics Ltd – https://www.nlplastics.com.hk/pet-hdpe/).

*** Based on research conducted by a local university, ‘Consequential Life Cycle Analysis Results for the Development of Bonaqua Environmental Claims’ (July 22, 2022).

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About The Coca-Cola Company

The Coca-Cola Company is a total beverage company, offering over 500 brands in more than 200 countries. In Hong Kong, the company has a portfolio covering sparkling, sweetened and unsweetened tea, juice, sports drink, water, enhanced hydration beverages, etc. We have 12 brands offering 70 different variants such as “Coca-Cola”, “Coca-Cola zero”, “Coca-Cola Plus”, “Sprite”, “Fanta”, “Schweppes”, “OOHA”, “Bonaqua” Mineralized Water, “Authentic Tea House”, “Minute Maid”, “Minute Maid Qoo”, “Glaceau vitaminwater”, “Yeung Gwong”, “Aquarius”, “Healthworks” and “Kochakaden” “Craftea”. We are constantly transforming our portfolio, from reducing sugar in our drinks to bringing innovative new products to market. Learn more at Coca-Cola Journey at coca-cola.hk and follow us on Facebook and Instagram.