The Federal Government has yet to ban plastic packaging in the country because of inadequate recycling capacity and a lack of awareness among Nigerians.

At the unveiling of Nestlé’s 50 per cent recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET), in Abuja, yesterday, Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment, Doris Uzoka, said Nigeria had demonstrated unwillingness to support a global ban on plastic, but advised recycling as a better option.

Uzoka, who was represented by the Director, Chemical and Non-Petroleum Industrial Development Department of the ministry, Francis Onuorah, explained that as an oil-producing country, Nigeria could not call the ban on a crude oil by-product.

She said: “Nigeria is a leading oil and gas producer. Plastic is a by-product of the important product. At every climate forum, Nigeria has always insisted that recycling plastic packaging is a better option than total ban. We are very elated that Nestle has blazed the trail in this regard.”

Minister of Environment, Balarabe Lawal, commended the strategies that support environmental sustainability, and reduce the already huge strain on natural resources, while building local economies.

The initiative by Nestle Nigeria targets a 50 per cent recycled PET, effectively reducing the use of virgin plastics in its packaging by 50 per cent.

According to the firm, the milestone represents the company’s journey towards 100 per cent plastics neutrality and ensures the last mile for plastics circularity.

Speaking on the journey towards plastics neutrality and the significance of the 50 per cent PET inclusion in the Nestlé Pure Life water bottles, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé Nigeria, Mr Wassim Elhusseini, said: “Since 2018, Nestlé Nigeria has been working with partners to recover as much plastic as we sell, based on a ‘one tonne in, one tonne out’ principle. In 2021, we started on the step by teaming up with Alef (a recycling firm) to achieve our objective of cutting virgin plastic in our packaging by a third by 2025. Today, we are very proud to be the first to achieve this milestone of 50 per cent PET inclusion in our water bottles in Nigeria. Thanks to the resilience of our team working with Alef to produce food-grade PET in Nigeria. I also recognise and commend the regulatory agencies – National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) – who have ensured compliance to the highest standards.”

Managing Director of Alef, Wissam Ramlawi, said: “This has been a long, rigorous journey for us, working with Nestlé’s technical and quality assurance teams to comply with Nestlé’s very demanding standards and procedures. We also had the pleasure of working with regulators and our suppliers to achieve the desired food-grade quality standards for PET.”

Category and Marketing Manager, Nestlé Waters, Joy Abdulahi-John, said Nestlé Pure Life achieving 50 per cent PET aligns with the brand’s purpose.