Coca-Cola PH Empowers Entrepreneurs through Public-Private Partnerships and Digital Innovation

MANILA, Philippines, 19 March 2024 — Two programs supported by Coca-Cola Philippines focused on women's economic empowerment were showcased at the 68th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UN CSW) taking place from March 11 to 22 at the UN Headquarters in New York. These initiatives highlight Coca-Cola's commitment to supporting women and providing access to important business skills and capital, and building collaborative networks.

The digital Sari-Sari Store Training and Access to Resources (iSTAR) program, in the Philippines, in partnership with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and six reputable civil society organizations; and the Tindahan Extra Mile program (TEM): Balik PET Bottle Program, in collaboration with Basic Environmental Systems and Technologies, Inc. (BEST) and the Philippine Association of Stores and Carinderia Owners (PASCO), exemplify successful partnerships leveraging technology to drive women economic empowerment.

CSW is the UN’s largest annual gathering exclusively dedicated to the promotion of women’s rights, documenting the reality of women’s lives around the world, and shaping global commitments on gender equality and the empowerment of women.

This year’s session tackles how the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women can be advanced by addressing poverty, and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective. The two-week event will be attended by UN member states, specialized agencies that work with the UN, and accredited non-governmental organizations across the globe.

iSTAR: Helping women entrepreneurs thrive through digital

For over a decade, the STAR program, a joint effort between Coca-Cola Philippines and TESDA, focused on providing entrepreneurship training for micro-retailers. In 2020, this initiative transitioned into the iSTAR program, a fully digital learning platform.

Marife Hilario, an iSTAR graduate from Nueva Ecija, has increased her monthly earnings
to over Php15,000 with the support of the program

iSTAR aims to address key barriers that hinder the development of women entrepreneurs, such as limited access to training, resources, and mentorship. Through its expanded digital platform, iSTAR has empowered over 150,000 micro-entrepreneurs, surpassing its 2025 target of 100,000 graduates. The program is available and can be accessed for free nationwide.

Implemented in collaboration with six civil society organizations nationwide, the multi-awarded program equips micro-entrepreneurs with essential digital skills to leverage online platforms for business growth and sustainability.

In 2022, a group of entrepreneurs from individual businesses completed the iSTAR program. Using the skills and knowledge they gained, they formed the PASCO Producers Cooperative the following year. Their collaborative effort led to the opening of the Eco-Grocer Store in Muntinlupa City Local Government and their catering business. Since then, each member has been earning at least Php5,000 monthly from their cooperative business, in addition to their income from their own micro-retail stores.

TEM: Enabling micro-retailers for a World Without Waste

Building on the foundation of digitally skilled micro-entrepreneurs, Coca-Cola Philippines extends support through the TEM program by helping increase their income while helping promote environmental stewardship.

TEM collection bins are placed in front of sari-sari stores and carinderias. Here, consumers can drop their empty bottles and cans for recycling.

iSTAR beneficiaries are encouraged to join TEM. Through the program, micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) owners transform their stores into collection points for empty plastic bottles, which supports efforts to help reduce plastic waste and prevent pollution. With increased visibility and proximity to these drop-off bins, consumers are encouraged to dispose of their plastic bottles responsibly. Micro-retailers earn environmental points for collecting bottles, redeemable for cashback and products, strengthening their business. As of March, there are over 2,900 TEM members in the country. Earlier this month, Coca-Cola Philippines, BEST, PASCO, and the City Government of Bacolod launched the TEM program in Bacolod City.

TEM is a part of Coca-Cola Philippines’ consumer engagement program, “May Ikabobote Pa”, designed to educate, inspire, and engage consumers to return their empty bottles and cans for recycling. Through the Coca-Cola Philippines Sustainability Hub, consumers can locate the nearest collection points and discover more about Coca-Cola Philippines’ recycling initiatives.

This local effort aims to support The Coca-Cola Company's global sustainable packaging goals. Globally, the company aims to collect and recycle the equivalent of each bottle and can it sells by 2030, make its primary consumer packaging recyclable by 2025, and use an average of 50% recycled material in its packaging by 2030. 

Coca-Cola Philippines Ramps up PET Plastic Bottle Recycling Program through 2,200 Sari-Sari Stores and Carinderias Across NCR

MANILA, Philippines, 17 January 2024 — Consumers across Metro Manila can now drop off their empty PET bottles for recycling at over 2,200 sari-sari stores and carinderias. This initiative, the Tindahan Extra Mile (TEM): Balik PET Bottle Program of Coca-Cola Philippines and Basic Environmental Systems and Technologies, Inc. (BEST), not only extends the life of these bottles but also offers financial incentives for store owners. 

 

Promoting environmental sustainability while earning incentives 

 

How does this work? TEM collection bins are positioned in front of sari-sari stores and carinderias where consumers can conveniently drop off their empty bottles and cans for recycling. After collection, PET bottles are weighed at each store and recorded in the store owner's bXTRA app account. Store owners earn points that can be exchanged for cash back depending on the number of bottles acquired in a month. They can choose to withdraw the points as cash or use them to acquire Coca-Cola products and merchandise. 

 

 

TEM collection bins are placed in front of sari-sari stores and carinderias. 

Here, consumers can drop their empty bottles and cans for recycling. 

 

“Malaking tulong sa amin ‘tong programa, kaya salamat talaga sa Coca-Cola. Kumikita na kami, nakatutulong pa kami sa kalikasan (We are grateful to Coca-Cola because this program is a big help to us. We are earning while also helping the environment),” said Carolina Catimbang, a store owner in Brgy. West Bicutan. 

 

 

Store owner Lolita Repia said Coca-Cola Philippines and BEST’s Tindahan Extra Mile Program has helped her grow her business and increase her income while contributing to the cleanliness of her community. 

 

When asked about her inspiration in joining the TEM Program, Lolita Repia, another store owner, shared, “Ang naging inspirasyon ko sa pagsali sa programa ay ang pag-recycle. Ginagawa ko na ‘yun dati pa, nagbebenta ako ng mga bote sa junk shop (My inspiration for joining the program is recycling. I've been doing that for a while; I sell bottles directly to junk shops). 

 

“Pero ngayon, mas excited akong gawin ito dahil alam kong ‘yung mga bote na kinokolekta ko, magiging bote ulit. Masaya akong nakakatulong sa kapaligiran (But now, I'm more excited to do this because I know that the bottles I collect will become bottles again. I am happy to contribute to the environment), she added. 

 

Inspiring collective action toward recycling 

 

“Noong una sinasabihan namin ‘yung mga bumibili dito na kapag bumili sila ng Coke products, itapon nila ‘yung PET bottles sa bins. Ngayon, automatic na, eh (At first, we used to tell our customers that when they buy Coke products, they should throw the PET bottles into the bins. Now, it’s automatic),” shared Catimbang who noticed the easy cooperation of their customers in their recycling efforts. 

 

 

Carolina Catimbang showing Coca-Cola products sold at her store. 

The packaging of these products are made from 100% recycled plastic. 

 

“Kahit ‘yung jeepney drivers na customer namin, ‘yung trash nila, minsan sila na rin nagkukusang maglagay sa bins. Kaya minsan nagugulat ako, ang dami na (Even the jeepney drivers, who are our customers, willingly put their trash in the bins. That’s why sometimes I get surprised that our bins are filled with empty bottles),” she added. 

 

For PASCO National President Elilyn Gadia and National Treasurer Emma Alvarez, the TEM Program help adults become better examples to children. “Dapat nakikita ng mga bata sa mga magulang nila ‘yung pag-segregate ng basura at paglilinis ng kapaligiran. Natutuwa kami ‘pag may nakikita silang PET bottle sa daan, pinupulot nila (Children should see their parents segregating waste and cleaning their surroundings. We are happy to see children picking up empty bottles on the road). 

 

Gadia and Alvarez said they are happy to see TEM Program members growing with the help of Coca-Cola Philippines, especially as sari-sari stores and carinderia owners continue to recover from the income loss during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Advancing circularity of plastic packaging 

 

For 2024, Coca-Cola Philippines announces that it is expanding the Tindahan Extra Mile program to 2,400 stores.  

 

“We are one with Coca-Cola Philippines in ensuring that our bottles can have many lives by bringing our collected PET Bottles from Sari-Sari Stores to PETValue Philippines, a first of its kind,” said Jan Vincent Mercado, Senior Vice President for Business Development of BEST. “Our commitment to sustainability and waste innovation comes full circle through this partnership. Indeed, it is refreshing to walk the talk in circularity,” he added. 

Members of BEST delivering collected bottles through the Tindahan Extra Mile program

to the PETValue facility in Cavite

 

In September 2023, Coca-Cola Philippines launched its consumer engagement program, ‘May Ikabobote Pa’, to educate, inspire, and engage more consumers to return their empty bottles and cans so they can be recycled and turned into new materials. Through this, the company hopes to inspire behavior change among consumers and empower like-minded organizations and communities to continue working together to prevent plastic waste from ending up in places where they are not supposed to be. 

 

To advance the circularity of plastic packaging, Coca-Cola Philippines introduced new bottles made from 100% recycled PET plastic. This packaging innovation is now available in Coca-Cola Original (190ml), Wilkins Pure (500ml), and Sprite 500ml. These bottles can be recycled many times, significantly reducing the volume of virgin plastics created and used. 

Consumers can locate the nearest collection points and discover more about Coca-Cola Philippines’ recycling initiatives through the Coca-Cola Sustainability Hub. 

Young Innovators Hack Solutions to Marine Plastic Litter this World Oceans Day

This June 8, World Ocean’s Day, seasoned hackers, tech enthusiasts, and young innovators will hack solutions to the country’s pressing marine plastic litter problem at the Plastic 3R Hacks PH Grand Finals. 

Plastic 3R Hacks PH is a nationwide virtual hackathon that aims to harness solutions to marine plastic pollution in the Philippines. More than 150 participants representing cities and universities across the country registered for the competition. The participants went through a series of virtual activities such as a pre-hack event, mentoring sessions, and project development. Eighteen qualifying teams went through a preliminary judging which selected the top ten teams who will advance to the virtual Grand Finals.

These ten youth teams from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, will showcase their innovative solutions to reuse, reduce, and recycle plastics and plastic waste. From technology solutions such as open sources recycling system, AI-based rewards-system waste segregation app for individuals and households, and mobile application monitoring and grading tool for local government units, to disruptive non-tech ideas like business concepts for creative upcycling process, the virtual event will highlight some of the brightest ideas to save our oceans by reducing marine plastic litter. 

The teams will present their solutions to a panel of local and international judges from the national government, NGOs, and the private sector.

“Major adjustments had to be done to run a hackathon in the new normal, and our teams pulled through. The youth’s creativity and passion to come up with innovative ideas – especially to issues as serious as marine plastic litter- should not stop because of the pandemic,” said Elaine Cedillo, Hackathon Master and Founder of Red Wizard Event Technology. 

Based on a 2010 baseline study*, even though the Philippines has among the highest trash collection rates in Southeast Asia, it has become the world’s third largest source of marine litter. 

Christopher Rollo, Country Programme Manager of UN-Habitat Philippines said, “our country is an archipelago of more than 7,000 islands, and more than 70% of our cities are along the rivers and coasts – our way of life is very much tied to our rivers, coasts, and seas. We cannot have a better quality of life if we do not ensure the protection and better quality of the waters around us. We are glad that we have bright young minds who join us in keeping our oceans healthy, and our cities clean.” 

Plastic 3R Hacks PH Grand Winner will receive P50,000 cash prize, Runner Up will receive P20,0000. Aside from the cash prizes, all teams have opportunities for possible funding and development of their solutions for real life application. 

Plastic 3R Hacks PH is organized by Redwizard Events Technology in close collaboration with the Healthy Oceans and Clean Cities Initiative, a project funded by the Government of Japan and being implemented by UN-Habitat Philippines, which aims to enable local governments and communities in the Philippines to reduce marine plastic pollution. Plastic 3R Hacks PH is sponsored by Aboitiz Construction, Unionbank Philippines, and Nestle Philippines. 

For more information or media inquiries, visit www.facebook.com/Plastic3RHacksph or contact Hackathon Master Elaine Cedillo at ebcedillo@gmail.com. 

Coming Home to Masskara with Coke Studio

This year’s Masskara Festival in Negros Occidental celebrated more color and more music as Coke Studio brought together the Negrenses and the artists of this year’s Coke Studio in one special stage, hyping up the volume and heat along Lacson Street.

The Coke Studio stage was headlined by singer and heartthrob Sam Concepcion, and local bands Cali Island and Aire Band. But more than the music festival, Coca-Cola Philippines also brought to the city of smiles its World Without Waste campaign which seeks to collect every bottle and can that it will produce by 2030, while also including recycled materials into its packaging.

Specially designed trash bins were distributed around key festival areas to help the public segregate recyclables from other wastes, and in the process, help partners Philippine Reef and Rainforest Conservation Foundation, Inc., Masskara Foundation, IPM-Construction and Development Corporation Waste Management, and the Department of Public Service Local Waste Management in keeping the streets clean and litter-free despite the large volume of people. Throughout the five days of festivities, almost 80 kilograms of PET bottles were collected for recycling.

“There is so much to be done in order to effectively reduce the waste that we produce, and every small action makes a difference. By helping the public in segregating recyclables from trash, we are slowly making them see that recyclables like PET bottles are readily accessible resources that can and should be given second life and not just end up in our landfills and oceans after one use,” said Jonah de Lumen-Pernia, Coca-Cola Philippines Director for Public Affairs and Communications.

The main streets of Bacolod City were painted with the ubiquitous red banners bearing the iconic Spencerian script font that spells out the well-loved beverage. The heart of Lacson Street was cordoned off Friday afternoon as the huge Coke Studio stage took shape for the night’s festivities.

“The Masskara Festival is an important occasion for us at Coca-Cola Philippines as it is an opportunity to strengthen our partnerships with various stakeholders in Negros as well as give back to our consumers by joining the festivities,” de Lumen-Pernia said.

The beverage brand, through its social responsibility arm, Coca-Cola Foundation Philippines, inked several partnerships with government and non-government organizations to help improve the sugar production of small sugar farmers. The partnerships include providing irrigation, high-yielding variety, and technical training for the farmer beneficiaries.

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a total beverage company, offering over 500 brands in more than 200 countries. In addition to the company’s Coca-Cola brands, our portfolio includes some of the world’s most valuable beverage brands, such as AdeS soy-based beverages, Ayataka green tea, Dasani waters, Del Valle juices and nectars, Fanta, Georgia coffee, Gold Peak teas and coffees, Honest Tea, innocent smoothies and juices, Minute Maid juices, Powerade sports drinks, Simply juices, smartwater, Sprite, vitaminwater and ZICO coconut water. We’re constantly transforming our portfolio, from reducing sugar in our drinks to bringing innovative new products to market. We’re also working to reduce our environmental impact by replenishing water and promoting recycling. With our bottling partners, we employ more than 700,000 people, bringing economic opportunity to local communities worldwide. Learn more at Coca-Cola Journey at www.coca-colacompany.com and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.

TuneCycle Pumps Up Recycling Experience at Coke Studio

For most people, waste recycling and creating music are simply two things that are worlds apart. But at the recent launch of Coke Studio Season 2 at the World Trade Center in Manila, these two ideas shared one stage to raise awareness about a growing plastic waste problem among the youth.

One of the highlights of the event was a live demonstration of the TuneCycle, a makeshift recyclable PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottle grinder that is powered by a pedal mechanism – similar to those found in bicycles. The TuneCycle also has earphones for the user to listen to original Pilipino music (OPM) as they pedal away.

This is part of the global goal of The Coca-Cola Company of a World Without Waste. In January this year, Coca-Cola announced an ambitious goal to collect and recycle the equivalent of every bottle or can sold by year 2030. In the Philippines, one of the ways to reach this goal is to bring back PET bottles home through Coke Studio.

“This is an interactive way of making the public, particularly the youth, more involved in recycling. It may be a small step, but it helps inculcate the act of recycling in their lives. As we at Coca-Cola continue to find solutions to realize a World Without Waste, every action, no matter how small, actually counts,” said Jonah de Lumen-Pernia, Director for Public Affairs and Communications of Coca-Cola Philippines.

As one of the avenues that bring Coca-Cola closer to the youth, music is also being tapped to make recycling more relevant to the younger market. As part of the Coke Studio caravan, the TuneCycle aims to amplify how each recyclable PET bottle can have another purpose after the consumption of its content. In the case of TuneCycle, the shredded recyclable PET bottles will become part of eco-bricks that will serve as pavers for a public school.

“Every action to breathe new life into recyclables matters. Every action brings us closer to realizing the vision of a World Without Waste. With the TuneCycle, we are able to inspire more people to find ways for recyclable PET bottles to come home and breathe second lives into them, instead of throwing them in dumpsites, or worst, ending up in our oceans,” said de Lumen-Pernia.

Watch out for future Coke Studio events and bring recyclable PET bottles to their home in Coca-Cola.

About The Coca-Cola Company

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a total beverage company, offering over 500 brands in more than 200 countries. In addition to the company’s Coca-Cola brands, our portfolio includes some of the world’s most valuable beverage brands, such as AdeS soy-based beverages, Ayataka green tea, Dasani waters, Del Valle juices and nectars, Fanta, Georgia coffee, Gold Peak teas and coffees, Honest Tea, innocent smoothies and juices, Minute Maid juices, Powerade sports drinks, Simply juices, smartwater, Sprite, vitaminwater and ZICO coconut water. We’re constantly transforming our portfolio, from reducing sugar in our drinks to bringing innovative new products to market. We’re also working to reduce our environmental impact by replenishing water and promoting recycling. With our bottling partners, we employ more than 700,000 people, bringing economic opportunity to local communities worldwide. Learn more at Coca-Cola Journey atwww.coca-colacompany.com and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.