The zero-waste bring your own bottle (bote) program of local sauces and condiments company NutriAsia won a major international business award.
The “Bring Your Own Bote” campaign, launched in 2019, was named a Bronze Stevie Award winner at the 17th Annual International Business Awards, the world’s premier business awards program open to all individuals and organizations worldwide.
The awarding ceremony will be held virtually on December 1.
More than 3,800 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted this year for consideration in a wide range of categories. NutriAsia entered its campaign under the competition’s Corporate Responsibility Communications or PR Campaign/Program of the Year category.
The company’s first BYOB store was established at The Mind Museum in Bonifacio Global City. Explicitly designed to be an eco-friendly space, the store was half-built with walls made of glass, so the public can see the refilling process, while the other half is made of eco-bricks which include shredded used plastic as a component.
Serving as both a refilling and selling station, the BYOB Store encourages consumers to bring their own reusable containers to stock up on their condiments such as vinegar, soy sauce, catsup, and cooking oil. All products are sold at prices lower than packaged counterparts in the market.
BYOB also serves as a drop-off point for recyclable plastics, which are repurposed into school furnishings for its beneficiary school.
The first BYOB Store was originally slated to end its operations in September last year, but due to popular demand, it became a permanent set-up on the location and has since been officially made into the first NutriAsia BYOB branch.
Following social distancing protocols for COVID-19 prevention, the NutriAsia BYOB Store in BGC has added new innovations to better serve customers during this time. An online order form via https://cdn.jotfor.ms/nai.byob/orderform as well as cashless payments are currently in place to reduce physical contact during transactions.
In February, a second branch in Quezon City was set up in partnership with the local government.
As of March, NutriAsia reported the BYOB campaign has already refilled more than 2,000 bottles of condiments and collected 1,000 kilos of plastics for repurposing.