In order to collect 1,000 tonnes of plastic from Dhaka in the upcoming year, Unilever Bangladesh Ltd (UBL) and CIRCULAR, a socially motivated organization engaged in managing plastic trash, have teamed up.
According to a statement released by Unilever on Saturday, the plastic wastes (flexible, single-use and rigid) will be collected from the two city corporations of Dhaka from June this year to May 2023.
According to data from the World Bank,, less than one-third (30 per cent) of the plastic waste produced in Bangladesh is collected and only 37 per cent of the collected plastic garbage gets recycled while the remainder is landfilled, with an estimated 24,032–36,047 tonnes of it being dumped into the river system.
To prevent this environmental catastrophe caused by plastic waste pollution, Unilever Bangladesh believes it is important to build a sustainable circular loop that contributes to circular economy and sustainable development goals (SDGs).
UBL, the country’s oldest and largest fast-moving consumer good (FMCG) company, has built multi-stakeholder models with diversified partners to collect 10,000 tonnes of plastic from the environment by 2023.
Therefore, the latest plastic collection collaboration with CIRCULAR is a testament of its continuous progression towards UBL’s commitment to improve health of the planet and environment by collecting more plastics.
In 2021, UBL has launched the biggest municipal backed plastic waste collection project of Bangladesh in collaboration with Narayanganj City Corporation and UNDP.
Unilever in partnership with CIRCULAR will work on building a sustainable and equitable reverse supply chain for the recovery of all kinds of post-consumed plastics waste.
Zaved Akhtar, chief executive officer and managing director of Unilever Bangladesh Limited, said: “Our value is to do business sustainably and leave behind a thriving world for future generations.”
“We want to ensure that plastic stays in the economy and out of the environment. As a responsible company, we are committed to playing our part.”
“However, plastic pollution is too big for us to solve alone. We believe that this is a collective responsibility, and each stakeholder needs to play an active role,” he said.
– With The Daily Star input
