MANILA — In celebration of Zero Waste Month, plastic waste reduction advocates kicked off the “Philippine Reuse Study Tour and Conference” on Jan. 20, 2025, in a bid to amplify the viability of reuse and refill solutions, as a way to address the scourge of plastic pollution.
The three-day event, consisting of a conference with reuse practitioners and other multi-sectoral stakeholders alongside site visits to reuse and refill programs across Metro Manila, was held at Hive Hotel in Quezon from January 20 to 22 and is co-organized by Mother Earth Foundation, Greenpeace Philippines, GAIA, Break Free from Plastic and Plasticdiet Indonesia.
The study tour aims to address existing challenges and opportunities around reuse and refill systems and show attending LGU and government agency officials as well as private sector representatives that reuse and refill are not just sustainable and necessary, but also practical and doable.
Over 164 million sachets, 57 million shopping bags, and 45.2 million plastic labo bags are used on a daily basis in the Philippines,[1] with prevailing e-commerce and food delivery practices worsening the crisis. Environmental groups have long called for reuse and refill solutions alongside bans on single-use plastics, particularly sachets, as these not only create litter and exacerbate floods but also pollute water sources and break down into harmful microplastics that find their way into our food and bodies.
Reuse and refill systems [2] are upstream solutions that enable people to reuse packaging, eliminating the need for wasteful sachets and other throwaway containers. When adopted at scale, reuse and refill can replace disposables and effectively reduce plastic waste. Reuse systems, together with the right policies to cut down plastic production and use, can address the plastic crisis at the root of the problem.
Refill and reuse are feasible and easy to implement. Initiatives such as Kuha sa Tingi, Juana Zero Express, Back to Basics Ecostore, and a zero waste carinderia in Manila, prove that these are viable sustainable business models, something that can be done alongside city-wide plastic bans. Groups believe that these could all be replicated and scaled at the national level.
The groups are calling on legislators and national government agencies such as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to advance policies to institutionalize and mainstream reuse and refill systems, including ensuring:
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the targets are set for the transition to refill systems for frequently purchased food, cosmetic, and household products packaged in single-use plastics becomes mandatory;
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large-scale enterprises and medium-scale enterprises that manufacture the aforementioned products should be required to transition to refilling as a product delivery system, and mandatory targets for the transition are set;
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reuse and refill systems are made more competitive compared to single-use packaging such as sachets to enable producers and consumers to easily shift to reuse and refill;
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large-scale retailers should establish refilling stations in their establishments to accommodate the producers’ refillable or unpackaged products;
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proper guidelines that support reuse and refill are issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to advance the transition to reuse; and
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enterprises and consumers are incentivized with support mechanisms to overcome challenges, such as capital investment, time constraints, and inconvenience.
With local government units and communities leading the charge in the campaign, green groups believe that it’s about time for lawmakers and businesses to act.
[1] Sachet Economy: Big Problems in Small Packets
[2] Mainstreaming Reuse: Policy Recommendations for Reuse and Refill Systems in the Philippines
