“We aim to develop a platform to support the entire value chain in driving effective collection and recycling in South Africa. The starting point was announcing our partnership with Petco to drive recycling of used beverage cartons last year,” said Masale Manoko, sustainability manager, Tetra Pak Southern Africa.
“We are also committed to improving awareness by increased educational activities on issues related to LBP segregation and collection hence partnership with Petco and Woodlands on this awareness programme, as when it comes to a project of scale like this one, collaboration with our partners is key for success.”
The competition kicked off on 18 July with the purpose to educate learners on the importance of sorting, collecting, and recycling, as well as what Tetra Pak carton packages are made off. Gayatri Paper mills will be recycling all the collected cartons. All schools will be provided with branded bins where learners can place the used beverage packages they collect from home. The contents of the bins will be collected weekly, and schools will be able to track their progress via a mobile app. Learners will be encouraged to get their parents to purchase products in recyclable Tetra Pak products, with the hope that this trend will continue long after the competition has ended.
The winning school will win R25,000 for them to put towards school equipment plus 40 desks made from recycled Tetra Pak carton packages. The second prize will be R10,000, and the third prize will be R5,000. Additionally, the top collecting school in each area will be able to nominate one underprivileged school of their choice to win an additional 40 desks made from recycled carton packages.
“It is a great opportunity for us to be involved in this campaign,” says Marisa Maccaferri from Woodlands Dairy. “With the amount of waste generated projected to increase by 70% by 2050, we know our responsibility in helping to reduce our footprint on the environment by increasing the awareness of the critical importance of recycling.”
As part of the campaign, Tetra Pak, along with Woodlands Dairy and Petco will be running roadshows lessons focusing on recycling of beverage cartons. Learners will have an opportunity to take part in an exciting one-hour lesson about recycling, covering topics such as what recycling is and how to separate waste, waste pollution and its effect on the population, and how to identify recycling symbols. The roadshows will take place until 30 August 2023.
Schools that are taking part in the campaign include:
“Thank you to all the schools who have agreed to participate in this competition. Your contribution towards making our tomorrow a better one does not go unnoticed, and we look forward to embarking on this journey with you,” ends Manoko from Tetra Pak.
