Carlsberg Hong Kong kicks off Betterment Campaign with city's first Bottle Recycling Vending Machine

Carlsberg Brewery Hong Kong (Carlsberg HK) has a launched a new eco-friendly campaign, headlined by the launch of a recycling machine for beer bottles.

The “Betterment Campaign” that has been launched with McCann Hong Kong (McCann) is aimed at targeting the weaknesses in the city’s approach to environmentalism, specifically recycling. According to the company’s findings, fewer than a third of glass bottles in Hong Kong are recycled.

According to Carlsberg Marketing director Kelvin Cheng, “Betterment is a core principle at Carlsberg. We aim to create a better drinking experience on one hand, and contribute to society one the other.”

The centrepiece of this campaign is the Bottle Recycling Vending Machine. A first for Hong Kong, McCann partnered with recycling tech company Carbon Coin to develop the device, which incentivises use by offering a range of rewards depending on how many bottles are recycled with it. And though the units may be Carlsberg branded, the beer brand has made the community-spirited choice of making sure these machines will accept any and all beer brands. Though they have also made the forgivable marketing-minded concession to making Carlsberg bottles generate greater rewards.

McCann managing director, Florence Kong, commented “We’re very conscious that Carlsberg isn’t just about growth, but also sustainability. So we decided that we were not only going to help Carlsberg sell bottles of beer, but also help them get those bottles back.”

The larger Betterment campaign that McCann has developed will include educational films, social content, and PR presenting green initiatives Carlsberg has undertaken including its comprehensive recycling program, more durable glass bottles, and greener ink.

“While it would have been easy to talk about the idea of ‘Betterment’, we felt it was more in the spirit of Carlsberg’s and McCann’s principles to actually do something for the betterment of Hong Kong…” said McCann executive creative director, Wen Louie, “…and in doing so, we gave ourselves something to really talk about.”

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