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Corona Canada announces partnership with Ocean Wise

For more information or to sign-up for a local shoreline cleanup, please visit protectparadise.ca. (CNW Group/Corona Canada)

TORONTO — Corona Canada has announced a partnership with Ocean Wise, a Vancouver-based global conservation organization focused on protecting and restoring the world’s oceans, and one of its programs, The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.

“As Canadians, we are proud of our nation’s natural beauty, but we often assume marine plastic pollution is a problem elsewhere and are unaware of our own contribution to the issue,” said Mike Bascom, Sr. Marketing Director, Corona Canada in a prepared statement. “Corona recognizes that change needs to start with our own production lines and making market-leading changes to our beer packs is a tangible way we can set an example for the industry.”

In 2019, Corona Canada replaced all plastic packaging on its cans on Canadian store shelves with new compostable cardboard packaging. This year, in partnership with the GITEC (Global Innovation and Technology Center), Corona furthers its packaging commitments by launching revolutionary packaging for six-pack beer bottles, becoming the first global beverage brand to take surplus barley straw to create an innovative paper packaging solution. The process uses 90 per cent less water in its pulp production than the traditional raw wood process, along with less energy and fewer harsh chemicals. This fall, Corona will also be making further technology-based packaging advancements and will be among the first in the world to introduce a state-of-the-art innovation in paperboard packaging.

Since 2017, Corona has cleaned over 1.6 million square meters of Canadian shorelines and this year, that number is set to increase. For every specially marked pack of Corona sold in Canada, one square metre of Canadian shoreline will be cleaned, in an effort to clean an incremental two million square metres by the end of 2021.

Shoreline cleanups are more relevant than ever as the impact of COVID-19 has increased the use of single-use plastics and pollution, which is contributing to polluting our shorelines. Corona’s partnership with Ocean Wise will aim to clean more of Canada’s shoreline through dedicated collaboration and united efforts, making it a timely and needed collaboration.

“This partnership with Corona Canada helps encourage Canadians to take part in the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup,” said Laura Hardman, Director of Plastic-Free Oceans at Ocean Wise. “Educating Canadians on plastic pollution is important. Once in the environment, plastic litter has dramatic impacts on wildlife and ecosystems. By adopting solutions we already have available today, we can reduce plastic flow into the ocean by as much as 80 per cent. With Corona’s help, we can raise awareness of this issue and mobilize Canadians to take action to protect our oceans.”