By Savithri Rodrigo
Contour glass bottle with aluminum cap manufactured entirely in Sri Lanka
Colombo (Commonwealth Union) _ Sri Lanka becomes the first country in the Indian and Southwest Asian region to introduce the Coca Cola Large Returnable Glass Bottle (LRGB) named ‘The Big Buddy Pack’ under the umbrella of being “good for the pocket and the planet”. The 750 ml iconic glass bottle with its very recognizable contours and customized aluminum cap is manufactured entirely in Sri Lanka. The 750ml glass bottle is available for Sprite and Fanta as well, with the glass bottles being transparent for a more elegant, sleeker and cleaner look.
The world renowned Coca Cola beverage company headquartered in Atlanta Georgia USA has a history of 136 years spanning the globe and that history has 61 years embedded in Sri Lanka, as one of the oldest beverage companies in the country. The company’s investments in Sri Lanka amount to nearly USD 100 million over the last two decades with an economic value creation that encompasses both direct and indirect employment which includes 80,000 plus trade outlet vendors.
Having been committed to reducing its carbon footprint for decades, the commitment to recovering and recycling began years back with PET plastic packaging being recycled and the plant having one of the single largest location rooftop-based solar installations in the country. Given its large water footprint, it also gives back twice the amount of water used back to communities.
The latest initiative of launching the Large Returnable Glass Bottle therefore is to not just to take older generations and even millennials down memory lane to an era when glass bottles were commonplace and returnability encompassed part of the trade system, but also to reduce the stress on the planet due to plastic use and create a culture of value in waste management. The unique refillable glass bottles, with its paper label and aluminum cap embraces that sustainability ethos, while bringing back a culture of minimum waste and value for money.
