Nestlé Pakistan introduces paper straws: eliminating 400 million plastic straws

Nestlé Pakistan has introduced paper straws across its entire ready-to-drink (RTD) product range, making it the first food and beverage company in Pakistan to do so. The initiative will eliminate over 400 million plastic straws, marking a breakthrough in its sustainable packaging transformation journey.

This is in line with the company’s global pledge to make its packaging 100% recyclable and reusable by 2025. Nestlé Pakistan’s brands – NESVITA, MILO®, FRUITAVITALS, NESFRUTA, and NESCAFÉ’s RTD products – are now in the market with paper straws that are made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper.

Highlighting Nestlé’s global sustainable packaging transformation journey, Chedid stressed, “Our vision is that none of our packaging, including plastics, ends up in landfills nor in oceans, lakes, and rivers. To achieve this, we have set ourselves the commitment of ensuring 100% of our packaging is reusable and recyclable by 2025, and the switch to paper straws is a major step towards this.”

Chedid also added that while many people are used to plastic straws, making the switch to paper straws will bring a slightly different consumer experience. “We encourage millions of trusted Nestlé consumers in Pakistan to embrace this change and join us in our journey towards a more sustainable future,” he said.

Cognizant of the challenges and the importance of plastic packaging, Chedid pointed out, “Plastic packaging plays an important role in safely delivering high-quality food and drinks to consumers and reducing food loss and waste.”

“We believe that with the right approach, collection and recycling of plastic is possible without causing a detrimental effect on the environment,” he added.

All paper straws across RTD products have been sourced responsibly, meet stringent quality requirements, and are safe to drink from. The entire RTD pack is recyclable after you finish drinking it.

In 2020, Nestlé Pakistan operationalised the Clean Hunza Project, with the support of District Council Hunza and Gilgit Baltistan Waste Management Company. The project focuses on managing 200 tons of packaging waste in 2021, eventually leading up to 1000 tons by 2025 to make Hunza waste-free. 

Similarly, Nestlé Pakistan also partnered with the World Bank and the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under the TREK initiative to make northern areas waste-free and promote responsible tourism in the region.

Nestlé Pakistan is also one of the founding members of CoRe (Collect & Recycle), the first-ever packaging alliance in Pakistan formed with the mission to eliminate packaging waste by enabling formal collection and recycling, while also raising awareness at a mass level.