Mars Petcare Thailand received The Eco-friendly Initiative of the Year Award at the FMCG Asia Awards 2023 for its 'SWAP Recycling' initiative.
This recognition stems from the company's aim to create a future where no plastic packaging becomes waste but is recycled, reused, or composted. The 'SWAP Recycling' Initiative was introduced in Thailand in response to concerns about flexible plastic packaging waste, providing pet parents with the opportunity to contribute to reducing plastic packaging waste. The program encourages Thai pet parents to trade empty pet food bags for discounts on Mars Petcare products such as PEDIGREE®, WHISKAS®, CESAR®, and SHEBA® at participating stores nationwide. The tremendous success in 2022 reflects a shift in behaviour regarding sustainability among pet parents.
"We are proud to receive this award. This recognition celebrates Mars' commitment to conducting business within the framework of sustainability. Together with our partners and pet parents in the Thai market, our goal was to transform consumer habits into responsible waste management. This effort has contributed to preventing over 7 tonnes of plastic waste from ending up as mismanaged waste, either in landfills or in the ocean. It marks one of the initial steps in scaling up the positive impact within Mars' Sustainable in a Generation plan." - Mr. Piyarath Amornchart, Asia Commercial Director, Mars Petcare Asia Pacific.
"The biggest celebration for the 'SWAP Recycling' Initiative has been the response from over 107,000 pet parents across Thailand, involving 174 pet shops. They collectively collected and contributed over 7 tonnes of plastic waste. The second life for this plastic material took the form of functional and innovative items, including cat- and paw-shaped paving blocks and bone-shaped benches. These eco-friendly urban landscape objects and decorations were donated to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) to enhance the functionality and charm of its BMA Dog Park. I am proud that the success of this program has given us the insights and understanding to develop similar SWAP initiatives beyond Thailand, for example, in the Philippines, and there are likely to be more SWAP programs across Asia in the near future." – Mr. Ratchakorn Chenpattanapong, General Manager for Mars Petcare Thailand and Indochina.
Mr. Prapas Lueangsirinapha, Director of the Environmental Office of BMA, said that "Mars Petcare's 'SWAP Recycling' program's objectives of reducing plastic packaging waste and encouraging waste segregation among pet owners are both in line with the vision of BMA. The products made from recycled packaging were placed at another BMA Dog Park as part of our second collaboration. We appreciate Mars Petcare for its sustainability and environmental commitment through its efforts in waste management and encouragement to drive waste segregation behaviour in a tangible and accessible way."
For more information on the Mars Sustainable in a Generation Plan and climate commitments, visit: www.mars.com/sustainability-plan/