Australian impact-led drinks brand Lo Bros Not Soda drives ocean clean up in partnership with Seven Clean Seas and comes as the world awaits the United Nations Treaty on Plastic.
June 8 2023 | In honour of United Nations World Oceans Day (June 8) and this year's theme of 'Planet Ocean’, Australian impact-led drinks brand Lo Bros Not Soda, in collaboration with Seven Clean Seas, is putting the ocean first to stem the rising tide of plastic pollution. Through a large-scale ocean clean up in Indonesia, Not Soda is determined to halt the estimated tripling of plastic floating in our oceans over the next decade. It comes as the world eagerly awaits the draft of a UN treaty on plastic, currently being negotiated in Paris.
Why is this important? Plastic pollution is one of the most pressing environmental issues of our time. Humanity is faced with a need for imminent action on ocean conservation. Australia has a responsibility to transition to a circular economy whilst contributing to the clean-up effort and Not Soda is leading the way.
Some of the world’s biggest soft drink companies have been revealed as the worst polluters around the globe. In addition, Australia is one of the largest plastic producers in the world. Just last month, UN Treaty UNEP chief Inger Andersen said of plastic waste “we cannot recycle our way out of this mess”, adding that “only elimination, reduction, a full life-cycle approach, transparency and a just transition can bring success.”
This week, the Not Soda and Seven Clean Seas teams are in the Australian neighbouring nation Indonesia, which has one of the highest levels of environmental plastic waste leakage globally.
Indonesia is home to some of the most biodiverse marine environments in the world along with Australia and the Great Barrier Reef.
Lo Bros founder Didi Lo said, "As World Oceans Day approaches, we reflect on the persistent issue of plastic pollution and the burden it places on disadvantaged nations. Seven Clean Seas, in partnership with Not Soda, has made remarkable strides in tackling this challenge by recovering a significant amount of plastic waste from waterways. As we celebrate this achievement, we must recognise the importance of collective action. We’re facing a global trash emergency and the time to act is now."
Seven Clean Seas, Co-founder, Tom Peacock-Nazil, said, “Once plastic enters the marine environment, it becomes a global issue and if we want to focus on avoiding this ocean catastrophe, we need to band together internationally and domestically. The seas are f***ing awesome, but they're filled with plastic! Luckily our mates at Lo Bros share our love for the ocean and partnered up Not Soda with Seven Clean Seas to do something about it!”
Lo Bros Not Soda and Seven Clean Seas have united in an initiative to address the problem, focusing their efforts on the islands of Batam and Bintan in the Riau Archipelago, Indonesia. These regions are among the hardest hit by plastic waste, and the lack of adequate waste management infrastructure exacerbates the problem. In communities of stilted houses over the sea, (kampongs) residents have nowhere to dispose of their plastic trash, so it often goes through a hole in their floorboards directly into the marine environment.
Fresh video footage in the fishing village of Air Gelubi shows the Seven Clean Seas team on the coasts of Bintan, where tonnes of plastic waste rolls up on the shore and accumulates daily. The islanders who live in Kawal village, Bintan, pull plastic out of the ocean after experiencing significant plastic waste washing up and contaminating their beaches. The situation is worsening, with waste building up on the entire coastline of Indonesia. It is a worldwide issue that demands attention.
To mark World Oceans Day, Not Soda along with Seven Clean Seas are on the ground in Bitam to drive participation in ocean clean up activities and drive change within some of the most impacted areas of Indonesia, highlighting the vital need to remove ocean plastic on an unforeseen scale. The recovered ocean plastic is then sent for sorting, separating and classification at Seven Clean Sea’s Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), where it is then recycled and repurposed into the circular economy or sent for secondary processing where necessary.
Not Soda's ocean cleanup efforts have already removed the equivalent weight of an astounding one million plastic bottles (17,000 kgs) from these vulnerable ocean ecosystems, well ahead of schedule on their pledge to remove 5 million bottles by 2025. This cleanup initiative has also provided over 60 local families with living wages and fair working conditions, contributing to the local economy.
Australian businesses have an opportunity to support and fund these vital cleanup efforts.
Lo Bros Not Soda encourages Australian brands to get on board and join the fight against plastic pollution in our oceans.
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Media Package (stills): HERE
Media Package (video VNR): HERE
Available for interview:
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Didi Lo, Australian entrepreneur and Lo Bros Founder—an esteemed change maker who has been shaking up the drinks industry and championing 'doin' good' for nearly 20 years.
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Tom Peacock-Nazil, Co-Founder of Seven Clean Seas—a visionary force driving change in the battle against plastic waste, a relentless advocate for our precious oceans. With an unwavering dedication to their cause, he leads a team that is transforming the world through their extraordinary efforts.
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Indonesian General Manager Siti Kasmiati
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An Indonesian family positively impacted by Not Soda and Seven Clean Seas’ beach clean up efforts
About us:
How it works: For every can of Lo Bros Not Soda sold, Seven Clean Seas will remove the equivalent weight of 2 soft drink bottles (a 375ml plastic soft drink bottle and cap is defined as 17 grams. That means Not Soda removes 34 grams of plastic for every can sold.) worth of plastic from marine environments. This could be plastic bottles, straws or discarded fishing line. At the end of the day, we need all types of plastic out of our oceans. Seven Clean Seas has multiple projects running, but the key clean-up projects Lo Bros Not Soda is working on with Seven Clean Seas is Batam Island. For every can of Not Soda sold, Lo Bros funds the removal of ocean plastic through their partnership with Seven Clean Seas.
About Lo Bros: Originating in Melbourne, Australia in 2016, Lo Bros is a beverage company with Doin’ Good at the heart of everything they do. With kombucha they use the ancient process of fermentation to transform sugar into tasty drinks that are full of living goodness. And with Not Soda they are cleaning up our oceans and waterways. It’s all about better-for-us beverages that make positive changes in our world. Available throughout Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, to find out more visit lobros.co
Lo Bro’s is officially a Net Zero Plastic Brand, through its partnership with Plastic Collective. While Lo Bros stands firmly against single-use plastic bottles, the audit by Plastic Collective measured the company’s own plastic footprint globally, including all packaging, warehousing and freight, bottle cap seals and pallet wrap. Post the audit, a reduction plan has been put in place to reduce the amount of plastic used, as well as all unavoidable plastic being offset through Plastic Collective.
About Seven Clean Seas: Seven Clean Seas is an ocean impact organisation based in Indonesia, working to remove marine plastic from oceans, coastlines, mangroves, rivers and nearshore areas. They have committed to recovering over 10 million kilos of marine debris by 2025 from the top 7 worst plastic polluted countries in the world. All this whilst formally employing a collection crew of 200, guaranteeing living wages, social security and safe working environments.
Contact details:
MEDIA ENQUIRIES
Rachel Harrison | rachel@thebraveryishere.com | 0487 288 144
Corah Fortune | corah@thebraveryishere.com | 0405 833 757
