As Nigeria’s population continues to grow, estimated by the United Nations
Population Fund to reach over 237 million by 2025—so does the volume of waste
generated across the country. With over 32 million tonnes of solid waste produced
annually according to the World Bank, the pressure on city authorities and private
stakeholders to develop sustainable waste management systems has never been
greater.
Among the most transformative responses to this challenge is the Extended Producer
Responsibility (EPR) policy, introduced in 2014 through the National Environmental
Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA). This policy gave birth to
the Food and Beverage Recycling Alliance (FBRA) in 2018, Nigeria’s first Producer
Responsibility Organisation (PRO) for the food and beverage sector.
Since its establishment, FBRA has evolved from a consortium of four founding
members into a robust alliance of 49 member organisations as at November 2025,
collectively driving the recovery, recycling, and circular management of post-
consumer packaging waste. The Alliance has successfully collected over 100,000
metric tonnes of plastic waste from the environment, redefining waste not as a
nuisance but as a resource within Nigeria’s circular economy.
“While FBRA may not be a household name on the streets, its impact is visible in
cleaner communities and empowered waste collectors, particularly in Lagos State,”
said Victoria Uwadoka, Corporate Communications, Public Affairs and Sustainability
Lead at Nestlé Nigeria.
Beyond being one of Nigeria’s largest and most trusted food and beverage companies,
Nestlé Nigeria has taken a bold leadership role in environmental sustainability and
waste management. The company’s approach goes beyond people and profit, it
embraces planet stewardship as a core business principle.
Nestlé Nigeria was one of FBRA’s founding members, and over the years has remained
one of its most active supporters and advocates. As Victoria Uwadoka explains:
“Though as producers we compete commercially, we unite as
collaborators when it comes to fulfilling shared environmental
responsibilities.”
This collaborative spirit has been the foundation of Nestlé’s pioneering achievements
in packaging innovation and waste recovery. In December 2023, the company
achieved 100% plastic neutrality, taking back every tonne of plastic it put into themarket. This milestone underscores Nestlé’s commitment to ensuring that the
volume of packaging material it introduces into the environment is matched by an
equivalent amount recovered and recycled.
Furthermore, Nestlé became the first company in Nigeria to incorporate 50% recycled
polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) into its Nestlé Pure Life water bottles, fully
compliant with the Standards Organisation of Nigeria’s food-grade packaging
standards. This initiative reflects not a one-time commitment but a sustained effort
toward circularity, a feat many producers have yet to match consistently.
Through FBRA’s framework, Nestlé Nigeria and other producers have been able to
galvanize the waste value chain, from collection to transformation, ensuring that
plastics are retrieved, recycled, and reintegrated into production cycles. The Alliance’s
model demonstrates that when producers, recyclers, collectors, and regulators
collaborate, waste becomes wealth.
“The manufacturers do not produce plastics to litter the streets,” Uwadoka explains.
“Consumers discard them, but through FBRA’s system, that waste is recovered,
creating jobs and value in the process.”
She further emphasized the importance of circularity in Nestlé’s sustainability
approach:
“Every bottle that is taken out and doesn’t end up in the ocean is one bottle
less of a problem. Closing the loop is key, circularity is the destination. It’s
not just about collection but ensuring we use, collect, transform, and
reuse.”
The FBRA-Nestlé partnership exemplifies how industry-led collaboration can drive real
impact in environmental management. Through shared responsibility, continuous
investment, and innovation, both organisations are not only addressing Nigeria’s
waste challenges but also advancing global sustainability goals.
As Nestlé Nigeria continues to take the lead in closing the loop and FBRA strengthens
the bridge between producers and recyclers, the message is clear: building a cleaner,
more sustainable Nigeria is a collective effort—and progress is well underway.
