The South African Brewery (SAB) has launched a campaign to get consumers, to think before throwing away their 660ml, 750ml, 910ml and 1L SAB returnable bottles. The campaign is an initiative that forms part of the brewery’s larger environmental social and governance (ESG) programme.
The campaign named ‘Ska Lahla’, which loosely translates as ‘Don’t throw away [the bottle]’,aims to encourage consumers to return empties, specifically in the Flavoured Alcoholic Beverages (FABs) category.
Heads up Redd’s and Brutal Fruit consumers
Zoleka Lisa, Vice President of Corporate Affairs at SAB says “The FABs category includes Redds, Brutal Fruit and Flying Fish. Our message to the consumers of these brands in particular , is to do good by the environment and return their bottles. SAB has been experiencing consistently low returns from the market of its returnable glass bottles year after year for some of its alcoholic products, especially in the FABs category.
The campaign is also in line with SAB’s ambition to use product packaging that is returnable or made from recycled content . “We are driven by our mission to reduce waste bearing in mind the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation. The legislation states that producers – such as ourselves, must increase the recovery of recyclables from municipal waste; integrate informal waste collectors into the post-consumer collection value chain; develop and establish a secondary market for recycled content; prioritise the promotion of small business and entrepreneurs with special focus on women, youth and people living with disabilities; pay a living wage to registered informal waste pickers, and more,” explains Lisa
Convenience is key
Anyone returning their returnable bottles gets money in their pocket. And returning a bottle couldn’t be easier and more convenient – all you need to do is to take them back to any participating outlet, and/or the outlet of purchase and get cash back.
It’s up to us
Lisa concludes, “Recycling is everybody’s responsibility, and we all benefit from reducing unnecessary waste in our environment. It may take time and effort to change people's habits, but as a start we encourage individuals to return their returnable beer bottles and contribute to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly future.”
