KUALA LUMPUR – This will eliminate 40 million plastic straws from daily use per year

Nestle Malaysia CEO Juan Aranols (right) and ready-to-drink business unit business executive officer Ng Su Yen (left) presenting MILO UHT 125ml drink packs with paper straws, to be rolled out from December 2019.

Nestle Malaysia is switching to paper straws instead of plastic when it rolls out its new Milo UHT 125ml drink packs at the end of the fourth quarter of 2019.

Nestle Malaysia Berhad chief executive officer Juan Aranols announced the breakthrough in the war to reduce plastic waste. With a packaging innovation for its MILO UHT 125ml drink packs it will eliminate 40 million plastic straws from daily use per year, and make Nestle the first food and beverage company in Malaysia to introduce paper straws for packaged drinks.

“This is our latest commitment to make all packaging 100% recyclable or reusable by 2025. Our teams have worked very hard to successfully roll out a solution that is not only effective and scalable, but most importantly, one that meets Nestle’s stringent product quality standards for the safety of consumers,” he said.

He reaffirmed Nestle’s commitment to continue search for finding solutions in our on-going war on plastic waste,”

Nestle Malaysia Berhad Ready-to-Drink Business Unit business executive officer Ng Su Yen said making the switch to an eco-friendly alternative for the straws was not simple.

“We had to ensure that the alternative straws are made from high quality material that fits packaging specifications, and remain sturdy when used, without posing any safety risks. We also had to identify suppliers who were capable of meeting our rigorous standards at the quantities required for high volume production. Following the successful efforts, we are truly pleased to share this important innovation with our consumers,” she said.

After the pilot initiative, Nestle Malaysia plans to roll out the packaging solution to its other MILO UHT variants in phases progressively with the ultimate objective of eliminating over 200 million plastic straws a year.

In addition to innovating its packaging to be fully recyclable, Nestle wants to inspire behaviour change to promote a waste-free future. Earlier this year, the Group eliminated all single-use plastic at Nestle work sites and educated employees on the importance of recycling.

The Group also held a nationwide beach clean-up, collecting over 5.6 tonnes of waste in nine locations across Malaysia, with over 600 Nestle employees participating.