Nestlé on the front line during cleaning activities organised to mark World Oceans Day

In Italy, "Clean-Up Day" was carried out in collaboration with Federparchi in four protected areas

MILAN - To celebrate World Oceans Day, on the 8 June, employees of Nestlé and Sanpellegrino, along with their families and local communities, participated in Clean-Up Day by picking up waste dumped into the environment in 4 specific natural areas.

Nestlé's initiative with Federparchi

With the goal of helping protect the Planet and raising awareness among its employees on the subject of plastic/pollution/sea, Nestlé, in collaboration with Federparchi, organised four events in four Italian protected natural areas. Federparchi represents over one hundred and sixty Italian protected area management bodies, including national and regional parks, marine protected areas and others, and is part of Europarc, which groups together 400 bodies from 38 European countries.

The events took place in Milan (Parco Agricolo Sud Milano), Bergamo (Parco Regionale Del Serio), Mantua (Parco Regionale Del Mincio) and Pisa (Parco Naturale Migliarino San Rossore Massaciuccoli). "I am proud to have been involved in this experience, which was an important moment for Nestlé employees around the world to share our values of respect for the environment and commitment to future generations", said Leo Wencel, President and CEO of Nestlé Italy.  The 300 plus people involved collected 1,300 kg of waste of which 340 kg was plastic, observing first-hand the impact of their efforts and the importance of proper waste disposal.  

A future without waste

The initiative is part of a global project by the Nestlé group, with 5,300 Nestlé and Nestlé Waters employees participating in 65 clean-up events organised in 35 countries. In total, more than 20 tonnes of waste were collected. "These numbers are really exceptional if we think that this is the first event on such a scale organised globally, in collaboration with NGOs and local communities”, said Maurizio Patarnello, CEO of Nestlé Waters. “Each event was a key moment to raise our awareness on this pressing issue. A few hundred children participated in educational workshops and learned how important respect for the environment and recycling are." This and other initiatives are part of the Nestlé Group's ambition to stop plastic waste entering the environment and to achieve plastic neutrality.

by Prisca Peroni