After over 60 years, world loved brand Sprite is taking a major step to improve sustainability through better recycling, by making a drastic change to its packaging. The brand is shifting all its plastic (PET) packaging, excluding caps and labels, from its signature green colour to clear.
Although green PET is recyclable, the recycled material is more often converted into single-use items like clothing and carpeting that cannot be recycled into new PET bottles. This limits the amount of use that can be derived from this material. Also, during the sorting process, green and other coloured PET is separated from clear material to avoid discolouring recycled food-grade packaging required to make new beverage bottles. Overall, this major brand change has been taken because the clear bottles are better for recycling.
This initiative is part of the Coca-Cola Company’s commitment to contribute towards a more circular economy and World Without Waste.
Heineken Saint Lucia Limited, licensed bottlers in Saint Lucia is excited about this change, as it further supports ongoing efforts to ensure that sustainable practices are part of its day-to-day business. As major financial supporters of the Replast Project, the first full collection and recycling project of its kind in Saint Lucia, Heineken Saint Lucia Ltd. and Coca-Cola, recognize the huge positive impact this change to clear bottle, can have on the recycling efforts here in the country.
The new Sprite Clear bottle is now available in Saint Lucia as of September 2022 and will fully replace the green bottle island-wide in the coming weeks.