18/02/2015

Unilever UK and Greenredeem, the company that rewards people for everyday green actions, today announced a new partnership aimed to increase recycling rates and drive actions which help us to all live more sustainably.

The ongoing partnership between Greenredeem and Unilever aims to support partner charities as well as motivating members through unique rewards from the Unilever stable of household brands - with the aim of driving recycling rates towards the EU target of a 50% recycling rate by 2020. Greenredeem members will see the partnership come to life under Unilever's Project Sunlight banner - communicating a vision for a brighter future for the next generation which inspires us all to take small, positive actions in our everyday lives to live more sustainably.

As their launch campaign, Greenredeem and Unilever are inviting Greenredeem members to donate points earned through recycling efforts to Comic Relief.  Headlining the campaign will be Unilever brands Persil and PG tips who are already working closely with Comic Relief with special money-raising packs in store and are now looking to drive recycling rates at the same time. 

Through Greenredeem's 135,000 strong member base, Unilever aims to raise a further £20,000 for Comic Relief ahead of Red Nose Day on 13th March 2015. Not only will this donation hugely benefit the charity and its projects, it will also mean that through the actions of Greenredeem members, 1000 tonnes of recycling will be saved from being sent to landfills across the UK - the equivalent of 50 recycling trucks.

Unilever Project Sunlight Marketing Manager, Anna Owen, explains, "We're so excited to work with Greenredeem to drive recycling rates in the UK. It's shocking how far the UK lags behind other nations and we see incentivising positive action as a key mechanic to move rates forward, to meet and hopefully smash 2020 target levels. To drive behavior change we know you need to make it easy, fun and rewarding to do the right thing - and that's just what the Greenredeem platform offers. We hope that through the partnership we can educate our consumers that they can recycle more Unilever product packaging than they may realise." Anna adds, "The Red Nose Day points for donations launch campaign is a brilliant way for us to donate more to Comic Relief and encourage recycling in the process."

"We're thrilled to be working with one of the world's leading consumer goods companies to help people be rewarded for taking green actions. This will not only benefit individuals, but will also help boost recycling rates and improve our environment for the next generation. We would encourage all Greenredeem members to think about donating their recycling reward points to all of our donations schemes as well as considering donating to Comic Relief - a national charity that works to do so much good both in our own country and abroad." explained Rob Crumbie, communications director at Greenredeem. "We also see this groundbreaking partnership as a real motivation for more local authorities to take a rewarding approach to recycling, enabling them to access a powerful partnership between the private and public sector to drive behavioural change at a local level. 

ENDS

Notes to editors

To donate points earned through recycling to Comic Relief, Greenredeem members simply need to sign into Greenredeem.co.uk(Link opens in a new window) and visit the Comic Relief Donations page(Link opens in a new window) to help raise money for Red Nose Day.

For more information, or to speak to a spokesperson from Greenredeem, please contact:

Hotwire PR for Greenredeem

greenredeem@hotwirepr.com

0207 608 2500

For more information:

Katya Bridges

UK & Ireland Media Relations Manager, Unilever

T: 01372 945925 / M: 07785 450287

E:katya.bridges@unilever.com

About Unilever:

Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of Food, Home and Personal Care products with sales in over 190 countries. We work with 174,000 colleagues around the world and generated annual sales of €49.8 billion in 2013. Over half of our company's footprint is in the faster growing developing and emerging markets (57% in 2013). Working to create a better future every day, we help people feel good, look good and get more out of life. Our portfolio includes some of the world's best known brands, 14 of which - Knorr, Persil / Omo, Dove, Sunsilk, Hellmann's, Surf, Lipton, Rexona / Sure, Wall's ice cream, Lux, Flora / Becel, Rama / Blue Band, Magnum and Axe / Lynx - now generate a turnover of €1 billion or more.

Our ambition is to double the size of our business, whilst reducing our overall environmental footprint (including sourcing, consumer use and disposal) and increasing our positive social impact. We are committed to helping more than a billion people take action to improve their health and well-being, sourcing all our agricultural raw materials sustainably by 2020, and decoupling our growth from our environmental impact. Supporting our three big goals, we have defined nine commitments, underpinned by targets encompassing social, environmental and economic areas. See more on the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan at www.unilever.com/sustainable-living.

Unilever has been recognised in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Indexes for 14 consecutive years. We are included in the FTSE4Good Index Series and attained a top environmental score of 5, leading to inclusion in the FTSE4Good Environmental Leaders Europe 40 Index. Unilever has been named sector leader of the CDP's Forests programme for three consecutive years, and in 2014 led the list of Global Corporate Sustainability Leaders in the GlobeScan/SustainAbility annual survey - for the fourth year running. Unilever was named LinkedIn's third most sought-after employer worldwide in 2013.

For more information about Unilever and its brands, please visit www.unilever.co.uk.

About Opportunity Now

Opportunity Now is the gender equality campaign from Business in the Community. Opportunity Now has defined three priorities that are critical to business in achieving the potential of people, teams and organisations. These are: a better gender balance for leadership progression; unbiased recognition and reward for all; and, agile work cultures that are fit for the future. For information about Opportunity Now's work on equality, diversity and inclusion please see http://opportunitynow.bitc.org.uk/(Link opens in a new window) .  

About Business in the Community

Business in the Community is a business-led charity committed to shaping a new contract between business and society.

We have over 30 years' experience forging better relationships between business and society, driven by a unique collaboration of business leaders. We stimulate action by challenging and supporting thousands of businesses to create a fairer society and a more sustainable future - through our local, national and international campaigns.

Business in the Community is one of The Prince's Charities, a group of not-for-profit organisations of which The Prince of Wales is president.www.bitc.org.uk(Link opens in a new window)

Opportunity Now media contact:Laura Cooney, E: laura.cooney@bitc.org.uk T: 020 7566 8653

UK & Ireland Press Office

Katya Bridges, UK & Ireland Media Relations Manager
T: 01372 945925 / M: 07785 450287 / E: katya.bridges@unilever.com


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