Perekrestok and Unilever in Russia installed another 30 containers for collecting used aerosol aluminum cylinders

2023: Installation of 30 containers to collect used aerosol aluminum cylinders

The Perekrestok retail chain and the Unilever Rus company have installed another 30 containers for collecting used aerosol aluminum cylinders in supermarkets in Moscow, the Moscow region, Nizhny Novgorod, Tula and Samara regions. Taking into account the containers already installed in St. Petersburg, the project has expanded to 50 reception points. This was announced on December 19, 2023 by X5 Group.

The collection started in March 2022 in 20 "Crossroads" of St. Petersburg. From the start of the project, it was possible to collect 2.3 tons of recyclable materials, 400 kg of which the retail chain and the Unilever Rus company used to make eight bike parks. For the production of one bicycle parking, about 50 kg of raw materials were required - that is, about 950 aerosol cylinders.

Aluminum as a raw material does not lose its properties in the process of even repeated processing - moreover, remelting requires significantly less energy than the metal with which they work for the first time. Moreover, so far not all sorting complexes can safely neutralize cylinders before recycling: such a project allows it to be collected, deactivated and transferred to remelting in order to be put into a further cycle. This was an incentive to support the project.

Promoting responsible consumption and use of resources has long been one of the goals of our sustainable development strategy. And as a large retail network working with a large number of manufacturers and buyers, we consider it our duty to develop projects aimed at ensuring that as much of the materials used as possible are sent for recycling, and not to landfills. Together with our partner Unilever Rus, we have chosen aerosol cylinders for further processing, since this is a fraction of raw materials that no one separately collects and which is very difficult to process. The technology for recycling cylinders is quite dangerous and is carried out only in special points. I would like to note that we became the first network to launch such a project, "said Valeria Zhukova, director of development of the client service of the Perekrestok retail network.

The initiative is also designed to motivate buyers to take a more responsible and conscious approach to the issue of waste processing and at the same time make this process as simple and convenient as possible.

{{quote "We are happy to note that the action to collect used aluminum vials for recycling is invariably popular. Containers can receive both shaving pen bottles, hairspray, and used deodorants from our brands such as Axe, Dove, Rexona, which is also important for educating the consumer and developing a cyclical economy. We also understand that it was previously not possible to safely hand over pressure cylinders to recyclable materials everywhere. Expanding the infrastructure will help to slightly correct this situation and improve the audience's understanding of responsible consumption. Regions were chosen based on the largest population and, as a result, more waste , "added Anastasia Novak, Project Manager for Sustainable Development at Unilever Rus.}}

The collected raw materials will be sent to the processing partner for deactivation and further remelting and production. The project for the collection of aerosol cylinders has been extended for 2024.

2022: Installation of eight bike parks from recycled aerosol cylinders

The Perekrestok retail chain, together with Unilever in Russia, installed eight bicycle parking lots from recycled aerosol cylinders at supermarkets in St. Petersburg. This was announced on January 19, 2023 by the retail chain.

The collection of cylinders began in February 2022: special containers appeared in 20 Perekrestki, where you can hand over used aluminum vials from deodorants, hairspray and other similar goods. For 11 months of the project, buyers transferred more than 800 kg of cylinders for processing, half of which was aimed at the production of eight bike parks. For the production of one bicycle parking, about 50 kg of raw materials were required - that is, about 950 aerosol cylinders. The rest of the collected and processed raw materials will be used in subsequent projects.

The Crossroads team and our clients always support initiatives that promote responsible consumption and use of resources. We understand that the largest proportion of materials used should be sent not to landfills, but to recycling. In 2022 alone, through special containers installed on the territory of our stores, we managed to collect 10 tons of plastic caps, more than 2 tons of PET bottles and aluminum cans, about 1 ton of toothbrushes and 5 tons of used batteries, - said Andrei Kalmykov, managing director of the federal trade network Perekrestok.

Unilever's portfolio includes brands such as Axe, Dove and Rexona, whose deodorants are made in aluminium cylinders, among others. We strive to keep as much raw materials as possible in a closed cycle and are glad that we have the opportunity to send at least part of the aluminum to downcycling bike parks. Aluminum scrap (secondary raw materials) requires about 5% of the production energy that would be spent on the manufacture of a primary aluminum package. Thus, the neutralization and remelting of aluminum allows you to reduce its carbon footprint and give our goods a second life, - said Anastasia Novak, head of projects in the field of sustainable development at Unilever in Russia and Belarus.