Reducing packaging waste
In 2005 Unilever teamed up with the Federation of Thai Industries, the Thai government and other leading packaging and consumer goods manufacturers to found the Thailand Institute of Packaging Management for Sustainable Environment (TIPMSE).
TIPMSE's mission is to reduce packaging waste by encouraging environmentally friendly packaging and promoting better waste management systems. It supports communities and organisations such as municipalities, schools and universities with their attempts to manage packaging waste. The institute, the first of its kind inThailand, uses an integrated packaging waste management model to analyse packaging impacts from design to usage, recycling and disposal.
From awareness to action
The institute's first job was to raise public awareness about its role. It then started implementing a number of pilot projects. By the end of 2007 it had established:
collection and sorting centres for packaging waste in eleven municipalities;
recycling banks in 86 local communities; and
partnerships with 16 universities to establish waste recycling systems.
TIPMSE expects to reach a further 200 local communities in 2008.
Pongtip Thesaphu, Communications Director, Unilever Thai Trading Limited, said, "TIPMSE’s goal is to reduce packaging waste by 12% within five years of its launch. With representatives of five key government ministries sitting on TIPMSE’s Oversight Committee, it is clear that a cooperative environment has been created that will facilitate the creation of a national waste management plan."
Other companies supporting TIPMSE include Coca-Cola, Boonrawd Brewery, Tetra Pak, Serm Suk (Pepsi), Osotsapa, Greenspot, Procter & Gamble, Thai Asia Pacific Brewery, Nestle, Thai Beverage, Dutch Mill, TIPCO Foods, SIG Combibloc, Bangkok Glass, Thai Beverage Can, Crown Food Packaging, and Bangkok Can Manufacturing.
