P&G and Tokyo 2020 Announce The Podium Project – The First-Ever Medals Podiums Created From Recycled Plastic for Upcoming Olympic Games and Paralympic Games

CINCINNATI-Friday 14 June 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Today, in partnership with the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee, and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) announced that for the first time in Olympic and Paralympic Games histories, all medal podiums will be created entirely from recycled materials – and consumers can directly contribute.

The Tokyo 2020 Podium Project officially kicks off on Thursday, June 13th, in host-country Japan, inviting members of the community to collect their plastic items, like shampoo and dish detergent bottles, and bring them to the nearest AEON Group store location, major Japanese retail chain, for recycling. Collection boxes for discarded plastic will be provided in more than 2,000 AEON Group locations across the country, including AEON, AEON Style and MaxValu. The retailer will then forward the plastics to P&G, who will also leverage recycled plastic waste recovered from the ocean to contribute to the creation of the podiums. This project helps achieve mutual sustainability goals, expanding P&G’s longstanding larger global partnership with the IOC to help benefit the entire Olympic Movement including the lives of athletes, moms and their families around the world.

“Sustainability is at the heart of this effort and P&G is proud to work with Tokyo 2020 and the IOC to demonstrate how consumers can participate in reducing plastic waste,” said Marc Pritchard, P&G Chief Brand Officer. “The Tokyo 2020 Podium Project is an example of how the Olympic Games can be a catalyst to inspire actions that have a positive impact on the environment and society.”

The Podium Project also highlights Tokyo 2020’s commitment to engage the entire Japanese nation in the build-up to the Olympic Games and offers everyone an opportunity to play a role in the preparation. It will also contribute to the achievement of key UN Sustainable Development Goals, including “Responsible Consumption and Production,” “Life Below Water,” and “Partnerships for the Goals.”

“The Tokyo 2020 Podium Project is an excellent example of how the Olympic Games can inspire sustainable change in the host city and country,” said Marie Sallois, IOC Director for Sustainability. “We are very excited to see this project take shape, adding to our global efforts to tackle plastic waste. The IOC will continue to work closely with the Tokyo Organizing Committee to ensure that sustainability is an integral part of the Olympic Games 2020 and the legacy that they create.”

Each podium will include “post-consumer recycled” material that has been collected in Japan. The effort raises awareness about eliminating waste and promoting sustainable solutions. Highlights of the Podium Project include:

    The overall goal is to collect 1.5 million pieces of plastic packaging consisting of polyethylene and polypropylene plastic from consumers to produce recycled plastic resin.
    Through this, 75 grams of carbon dioxide will be saved for each piece of plastic recycled.
    Once the goal of 1.5 million pieces is reached, Tokyo 2020 and P&G will have saved enough energy to light a person’s home for 112 years.

Through this project, P&G and Tokyo 2020 will create all podiums to be used by all medaling athletes during the Olympic Games beginning July 24, 2020 and Paralympic Games beginning on August 25, 2020. Together with Tokyo 2020, P&G is planning to unveil the podiums in June 2020. Once the Tokyo 2020 Games conclude, P&G’s intent is to recycle the podiums once again, to create new P&G packaging. They will also be used as educational material to explain and promote the Olympic and Paralympic Movements and overall importance of sustainability.

The Tokyo 2020 Podium Project is a clear example of P&G’s continued support of the Olympic Agenda 2020, ensuring that the Olympic Games act as a catalyst for sustainable development to build a sustainable future for everyone. This vision closely aligns to P&G’s own commitments of achieving meaningful changes that touch and improve lives, as well as P&G’s “Ambition 2030” goal to develop solutions that stem the flow of plastic into the world’s oceans. Additionally, it will be the largest multi-category collection and material recycling program for post-consumption packaging in Japan ever.

About P&G’s Olympic Games Program

Around the world P&G brands including Always®, Gillette®, Pantene®, Head & Shoulders®, Tide®, and Downy® will be executing Olympic Games campaigns through a variety of media channels and in-store. P&G brands are committed to giving moms the best, each and every day. Not just moms of Olympians, but all moms, all around the world. As a Worldwide Olympic Partner, when P&G brands like Tide, Gillette and Pampers partner with athletes on their Olympic Games journey, P&G also recognizes the mom who supported them every step of the way.

About P&G

P&G serves consumers around the world with one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Always®, Ambi Pur®, Ariel®, Bounty®, Charmin®, Crest®, Dawn®, Downy®, Fairy®, Febreze®, Gain®, Gillette®, Head & Shoulders®, Lenor®, Olay®, Oral-B®, Pampers®, Pantene®, SK-II®, Tide®, Vicks®, and Whisper®. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 70 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and information about P&G and its brands.

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Contacts

Jeannie Tharrington
513-945-4422
tharrington.jm@pg.com


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