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Manila Bulletin devider Drive devider A green life is a great life

A green life is a great life

Published Jan 26, 2022 01:00 pm

This pioneering company transitions from recyclable to biodegradable to promote more sustainable opportunities in the Philippines

TOGETHER FOR A CAUSE Before concluding the cleanup drive, employees and dealers from the PC Dumaguete branch invite more volunteers to join their mission

Personal Collection Direct Selling, Inc. (PC) has successfully transitioned from recyclable packaging to the newest biodegradable packaging, making it the first company in the Philippines to do so. PC is leading the drive toward ridding the world of plastics that are harmful to the environment by shifting to biodegradable packaging. Its new biodegradable packaging is estimated to decompose in landfills after only five to 10 years, while regular plastic packaging may last for at least a thousand years.

The traditional notion that recycling alone could eliminate plastic waste is being questioned by data from the US Environment Protection Agency (FPA). Americans, for example, recycle only 35 percent of more than 267 million tons of solid waste every year. According to a 2020 study of the World-Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Philippines, only 40 percent of packaging waste in the Philippines is collected at the national level, and only nine percent of the plastic waste is recycled.

Keeping this in mind, PC takes a further step by not just going recyclable but also turning to biodegradable packaging. Through the launch of its “A Green Life is A Great Life” movement in June 2020, PC’s network of sellers has been mobilized to advocate for the advantages of biodegradable packaging as their contribution to helping protect the environment.

PLANTING THE FUTURE Volunteers stand one meter apart from each other while planting mangrove propagules in Pampanga

“We endeavored the shift from recyclable to biodegradable packaging because we believe that this is a sustainable solution that will not only address the major plastic pollution crisis, but will also mitigate many other environmental issues,” said Personal Collection president and CEO Jerome Tuguin. “And we are very enthusiastic to have pioneered this groundbreaking move that also aims to impact the future of every Filipino household.”

According to a 2020 WWF study, only 40 percent of packaging waste in the Philippines is collected at the national level, and only nine percent of the plastic waste is recycled.

PC is also one of the few companies in the world that continues to manufacture the greatest number of biodegradable bottles that are viable for preserving the quality of our environment. On Dec. 7, 2021, the company received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for its invaluable work, strategic measures, and active participation to advocate environmental protection and sustainability amid the threats of the COVID-19 pandemic.

CLEAN DRIVE Employees and dealers from PC Bayawan branch collecting trash and other debris along the shoreline of Villareal Beach, Negros Oriental

“We continue to look into more programs and initiatives to support our #GreenLifeGreatLife movement,” said Tuguin. “Last October, we started our coastal cleanups in some parts of the country and, just recently, we planted more than 70,000 mangroves in over 27.5 hectares of reforestation sites in Pampanga and Bataan.”

As part of PC’s primary environmental advocacy, a long-term partnership with Marine Conservation Philippines was made to conduct coastal cleanups in different areas of the country. On Oct. 26, 2021, PC facilitated its first coastal cleanup at Albiga Beach, Siaton, in Negros Oriental. Subsequently, the Siliman Beach cleanup in Dumaguete on Nov. 16, 2021 took place, followed by the coastal cleanup in Villareal Beach, Bayawan on Dec. 14, 2021. In all these cleanup activities, tons of plastic waste and other toxic materials were collected.

Related Tags

GreenLifeGreatLife Personal Collection Direct Selling Inc. Biodegradable Recyclable US Environment Protection Agency Philippines World-Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)
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