From yoghurt tubs to classroom desks
Danone Southern Africa has come up with an innovative way of converting its used yoghurt tubs into useful repurposed tubs that assume a new lease of life as classroom desks or strong, but lightweight concrete bricks to build insulated classrooms.
Ever thought of a small yoghurt tub being given a new lease of life and repurposed into a classroom desk or a strong but lightweight concrete brick?
If your answer is never, then you are in for a surprise of your life as Danone recently launched its One Desk – One Child recycling project that sees more than 19 tonnes of plastic waste and the collection of 86 000 yoghurt tubs all being diverted from landfills for a new lease of life.
Danone Southern Africa corporate affairs manager Leanne Kiezer said the yoghurt giant was concerned with its tubs constantly finding their way into the oceans and seas and causing untold damage to both marine life and the climate in general.
“We then decided to pilot a project which was designed to repurpose the yoghurt tubs and turn the waste into a useful material not just as desks in our classrooms but also to make insulated classrooms as well,” Kiezer told Alex News in an interview during the DanUp Soccer Clinic at the Discovery Soccer Park in Illovo.
The recycling project was being done in partnership with Pick n Pay and Interwaste to manage Danone’s waste footprint which Kiezer said the company hopes to turn itself into a zero waste to landfills by 2030 and 100% recyclable packaging by 2025.
Kiezer said 80 collection points had been established nationally and 53 of those were in Gauteng. The bulk of collection points are in the schools where children are encouraged to clean and bring their used yoghurt tubs to school which will then be collected and repurposed for a cleaner environment.
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