Students joining the school recycling programme. The programme this year will be expanded to over than 600 kindergartens and primary schools in HCM City. — VNS Photo

Swedish food processing and packaging solutions provider Tetra Pak on Wednesday announced plans to expand the recycling programme it has instituted together with partners to another 600-odd kindergartens and primary schools in HCM City.

It follows a successful trial at 30 kindergartens in 2018 – 19.

School children participating in the programme are instructed the simple steps of unfolding the four corners of used cartons, flattening, sticking covers to carton openings and placing them in dustbins for collection.

The used cartons are collected once every fortnight by NHC company and transported to the Dong Tien Paper factory to be made into such useful products as notebooks and bio-roof panels.

At a workshop to review the first phase and announce plans for the second yesterday (Wednesday), the companies said all participating kindergartens achieved positive results.

“The most concrete result of the pilot programme lies in schoolchildren’s improved awareness of the necessity to categorise , collect and recycle used cartons, thereby inspiring them, their teachers and their parents to be actively engaged in the categorising, collecting and recycling of used cartons,” Jeffrey Fielkow, managing director, Tetra Pak Vietnam, said.

The Swedish company is also engaged with community organisations to establish and expand the chain of public drop-off stations so that consumers can bring their used cartons for recycling.

It has a network of nearly 30 stations in Ha Noi and HCM City.

In collaboration with Korean retailer LOTTE Mart and NHC, Tetra Pak is setting up four more at LOTTE Mart supermarkets in Nam Saigon, Phu Tho, Tan Binh, and Go Vap. — VNS