Plastic Reboot Philippines Holds Its First Reuse and Refill Workshop

27 January 2026 - Makati City, Philippines

Plastic Reboot Philippines held its first Reuse and Refill Workshop on 27 January 2026, successfully convening key stakeholders from the private and public sectors in Makati City. The workshop provided a platform for participants to discuss  how to design reuse and refill systems in the Food and Beverage (F&B) sector to improve safety, operational effectiveness, and compliance with regulatory frameworks. 

Plastic Reboot is a global programme, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and co-led by UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and WWF. It is implemented in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). By partnering with governments, businesses, civil society organizations, and experts, the global programme is the first initiative of its kind to address plastic pollution through upstream and midstream circular solutions. In the Philippines, the programme is implemented by UNIDO and executed by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, in partnership with PCX Solutions.

The main discussions identified the priority areas for transforming plastic use in the food and beverage industry, emphasizing the need for strengthened inter-agency collaboration to advance the development and implementation of upstream policies:

1. Promoting design principles for reuse and refill systems at industrial and policy level to transition from linear single-use plastics and ensure health and safety, storage and handling reliability. 

2. Fostering public-private collaboration opportunities to scale reuse and refill approaches throughout the supply chain, ensuring operational feasibility and business models including through enhanced transparency, safety, liability, and accountability.

3. Developing regulatory frameworks including data, testing, and monitoring to inform future guidance and upstream policy development and alignment with food safety requirements.

Discussions also highlighted the importance of corporate sustainability strategies, cross-sector cooperation, and incentives that foster private sector engagement to ensure that the reuse and refill systems, developed under Plastic Reboot Philippines, remain sustainable beyond the project period and generate inputs to inform enabling policies and their effective implementation.

The Reuse and Refill Workshop marked a key milestone for Plastic Reboot Philippines, advancing collaboration between government and industry to design safe, effective, and scalable reuse and refill systems. The project will continue building on these outcomes to support a circular and resource-efficient plastics industry in the Philippines.

Plastic Reboot Philippines would like to express its deepest gratitude towards all participants: the Department of Environment and Natural Resources - Environmental Management Bureau, the Department of Trade and Industry - Consumer Protection and Advocacy Board, the Department of Science and Technology Development Cooperation, DOST - Industrial Technology Development Institute, DOST - Circular Economy Program, DOST - Office of the Undersecretary for Regional Operations, the City Government of Taguig, the Taguig City Environment and Natural Resources Office, the National Plastic Action Partnership Philippines, Salin PH, RIPPLEx, and Nutri-Asia, Inc.

Photos by Neitiviti Studios Inc.