After several months of disruptions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Tetra Pak, MM Mega Market (“MM”) and Vietnam Packaging Recycling Alliance (PRO Vietnam) have relaunched the collection program for used beverage cartons at MM Mega Market centers in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Consumers visit the display area of recycled products made from used cartons

In particular, from November 15th to November 21st, when visiting drop-off stations at MM centers in Ho Chi Minh City, customers will have the chance to visit display booths of recycled products made from beverage carton packages; learn more about the environment, and exchange beverage cartons for gifts. For every 50 used beverage cartons exchanged, customers will receive a multi-purpose cloth bag. Cartons are then collected and transported to Dong Tien paper factory in Binh Duong province to become materials for useful products, such as tables, chairs, industrial paper, notebooks, roofing sheets and bio-roof panels, among others.

"Carton collection and recycling is part of our roadmap towards a low-carbon circular economy. We envision our products to be made of 100% renewable materials which can be recycled and are being recycled after use. We are on track to expand this collection and recycling model to more retail systems, thereby encouraging to collect cartons, and expanding this meaningful action to the whole of society,” said Ms. Ly Quynh Trang, Director of Sustainability, Tetra Pak Vietnam.

This model helps Vietnamese consumers adopt a green lifestyle, raise awareness of waste and environmental issues, and provide consumers with more meaningful shopping experiences

“Our joint initiative has been deployed since 2020, with 8 drop-off stations at MM Mega Market centers in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. The program has seen positive outcomes after a year of implementation. We highly advocate this program as it is an effective model to help Vietnamese consumers adopt a green lifestyle, raise awareness of waste and environmental issues, thereby offering more meaningful experiences to our customers. We expect to expand this program to all MM centers across the country,” said Ms. Tran Kim Nga, Corporate Development Director, MM Mega Market Vietnam.

During its nearly 20 years of operation in Vietnam, MM Mega Market has always aimed for sustainability with practical initiatives to realize this ambition. Since mid-2020, disposable plastic bags are no longer provided at MM cashier counters across the country. Instead, MM encourages consumers to use reusable bags and provides them with cartons to pack goods.

The relaunch of the collection program is evidence of Tetra Pak’s continuing efforts in realizing its strategic commitment to protect food, people, and the planet, which is even more critical during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The program has been implemented since 2020 and relaunched after several months of disruptions due to the Covid-19 pandemic

Ms. Hoang Thi Lien, CEO, PRO Vietnam Company Ltd., said: "The responsibility for recycling, processing products, and used packages of manufactures and importers has been regulated in the Law on Environmental Protection. However, the sorting and collection of product packaging to be recycled in Vietnam still faces many limitations. Therefore, PRO Vietnam strongly supports Tetra Pak’s collection and recycling model at MM supermarkets. We are committed to support Tetra Pak as well as other PRO members in applying and expanding this model."

As the world’s leading food processing and packaging solutions company, Tetra Pak always places quality and sustainability at the core of all activities. In addition to the cooperative program with Mega Market, Tetra Pak has continuously promoted the collection and recycling of beverage cartons provided by the company to the Vietnamese market. The company is actively engaged with organizations, social enterprises, environmental groups, and retailers to expand its chain of public drop-off stations to 62 as of today. The large number of collection stations will pave the way for consumers to easily bring used cartons for recycling. To collect and recycle cartons on a large and widespread scale, Tetra Pak together with 8 leading food and beverage manufacturers in Vietnam founded the Vietnam Packaging Recycling Alliance (PRO Vietnam) under the common goal of recycling all packages by PRO members by 2030. 

An updated list of Tetra Pak’s drop-off stations can be found at www.taichevohopgiay.com