Addis Ababa – Almost 2 tonnes of plastic waste was collected for recycling during the Children’s Race and the Great Ethiopian Run which took place on Saturday and Sunday , Nov 19 and 20, 2022 in a partnership with PETCO Ethiopia to raise awareness of the need to recycle.

Through the Great Ethiopian Run’s partnership with PETCO Ethiopia, only recyclable materials were used in the production of the race t-shirts and goody bags, while all plastic bottles and other rubbish consumed and produced on race day was collected for recycling.

With the help of more than 44,000 runners in both the adult and children’s races, a total of 1,908kg of plastic waste was collected.

The run also used a lighter and clear water bottle for participants to make it easier to recycle.

The Great Ethiopian Run raises funding under the umbrella campaign named “Running for A Cause” to support local charitable organisations.

As a founding partner of PETCO, Coca-Cola Beverages Africa is taking the lead in developing increasingly sustainable ways to manufacture, distribute and sell its products.

“We use our industry leadership to be part of the solution to achieve positive change in the world and to build a more sustainable future for our planet,” said PETCO Ethiopia Chairman and managing director of Coca-Cola Beverages Africa in Ethiopia, Daryl Wilson.

“Our commitment is to invest in our planet and our packaging, to help make the world’s packaging problem a thing of the past, working in partnership with The Coca-Cola Company which launched a sustainable packaging initiative called World Without Waste in 2018.

“To clean up existing packaging, we’re bringing people together through programmes like beach and river cleanups and other ongoing local activities, such as PETCO’s partnership with the Great Ethiopian Run. To encourage more people to recycle more often, we’re investing to help people understand what to recycle, how to recycle, and where to recycle,” said Wilson.

“We also plan to work with local communities, NGOs, our competitors, and our critics to highlight this critical issue.”

*Update* On December 2, 2024, The Coca-Cola Company announced updated voluntary environmental goals. Read more here: The Coca-Cola Company Evolves Voluntary Environmental Goals