Translator: Mike Alderwegen Reviewer: Peter van de Ven
There you are, with your plastic keg,
telling you that using more plastic is good for the environment.
Yeah ...
I believe that breaking patterns
creates opportunities to leave the world a better place.
At this moment,
I see plastics littering the oceans.
It is polluting fish in such a way
that it is now entering our food chain.
This is happening on such a scale
that the media are widely reporting this.
And that is a good thing!
We are all familiar
with the larger plastic parts littering the oceans.
But the smaller, invisible parts are the biggest problem.
Plastics fall apart into smaller fragments,
thus transforming the water into plastic soup.
Marine animals mistake it for food,
and here plastic enters our food chain.
This might come as a surprise,
but I work with plastic packaging.
Because you need that packaging.
Have you ever tried carrying cola or water with your bare hands?
It is a reality:
we cannot live without plastic.
Look around you and see what in this room is made out of plastic.
Or look into your bag.
We can change the way we handle plastic
after we used it as a packaging material.
I am glad that more and more people,
like me, care about plastic polluting our environment.
And I am convinced
that the plastic problem can be solved
by handling plastic responsibly.
And for that we need everybody.
Let me tell you what we do.
We manufacture keykegs,
lightweight one-way kegs for the beverage industry.
For beer, wine, cocktails, sake -
I will tell you why in this case, more plastic benefits the environment.
Back in the days,
kegs were made of wood and later out of steel.
You could say that steel kegs
have become a standard in bulk packaging.
Steel kegs are heavy,
so working with them is very labour intensive.
Just imagine this.
These days, a steel keg filled with beer
is being shipped to Australia,
and the ship returns with empty kegs.
This hugely impacts CO2 emissions.
With a one-way keg,
the CO2 emissions for return shipping are zero.
Do you remember the temperatures last summer?
At one stage, water was becoming scarce.
We were all called upon
to use water responsibly.
In our case this meant
not using drinking water to water your garden.
In many areas of the world,
water is always a problem.
There is a shortage of drinking water,
and people die because of it.
Do we really have to waste drinking water to clean our kegs,
or are we going to drink it?
Another example.
To produce a glass bottle,
glass ovens are burning all day long.
You can imagine the CO2 emissions this causes?
This 30 liter keg can replace 90 beer bottles or 40 wine bottles.
Imagine how much less waste you get.
Our kegs are "circular by design".
This basically means that sustainability
was taken into account in the design phase.
Every used KeyKeg
can be reused almost entirely
as raw material to make new KeyKegs.
Landfill or incineration are no option for us.
Because we believe in reusable kegs.
In Europe alone, more than 400 million hectolitres of beer is produced annually.
This equals almost 70.000 Olympic swimming pools.
Currently, about 25 percent of that is packaged in kegs,
and these are mostly environmentally unfriendly steel kegs.
By utilizing our sustainable alternative,
the positive impact on the environment would be truly enormous.
Summarizing:
plastic kegs reduce CO2 emissions,
you don’t need water to clean the kegs,
and less energy is required to produce them.
And most importantly,
our entire community is committed to make sure
that the kegs are handled responsibly after use.
It all seems childishly simple.
An alternative that's sustainable and economically profitable.
Who wouldn't want that?
But let's think back for a bit.
We have seen this before.
Think about the wine bottle.
Remember using corks to close it?
Think of the energy it took
to convince people that a plastic cork would also work.
Nowadays, we are okay with screwcaps
and with wine on tap.
It is the same with kegs.
Steel kegs are the current standard.
Like the wooden barrel was before that.
The kegs need to be produced,
which provides jobs for many people.
Filling machines are tailored to them,
volume calculations standardized,
and all parties have committed themselves in contracts for years to come.
This makes our one way keg disruptive.
It messes up the entire supply chain
even though it is a product that not only benefits the environment,
but suppliers and consumers as well.
It takes time to change an ingrained process.
And unfortunately,
financial motives usually outweigh the environmental importance.
I understand, and I also have patience.
But at the same time,
I'm fighting to have this transition take place responsibly and swiftly.
The negative impact of steel kegs on the environment is far to great
to allow this process to take decades.
To be honest,
it feels a little bit like I am on a crusade.
And happily, I am not alone.
I get support from our Prime Minister Mark Rutte
and Euro Commissioner Frans Timmermans.
Because, like me, they also stand
for a responsible approach to handling waste streams.
Wherever possible, we tell authorities and governments
about the possibilities of lightweight kegs
within the beverage industry,
to enable them to set the right course in future legislation.
It is important to realize
that we are all consumers.
We have a responsibility in handling our waste.
We take responsibility!
We are giving the right example.
What are you doing with plastic after use?
My father, founder of our company,
believed in an idea.
His goal was to leave the world a better place than he found it.
Despite several setbacks,
he kept believing in a more sustainable, alternative packaging
for the beverage industry.
And we are getting there.
Manufacturers are telling us,
through their buying behaviour and their vision for the future,
that our one-way keg is the packaging of the future.
Our kegs are already used around the globe
by beverage producers large and small,
for beer, wine, sauces, glue,
and who knows what applications are yet to come.
More and more people are getting used to packaging materials other than steel.
And increasingly, sustainability is becoming the decisive factor.
Using more plastic is, in this case,
really better for the environment.
I will continue this mission to be disruptive
because the breaking of patterns in the beverage industry
has really only just started.
Luckily, one of our core values is to "Never Give Up".
Because we have plenty of work left to do.
The solution can be found in handling plastic waste responsibly.
We do this with the whole chain,
and the company OneCircle, who focus on collecting the kegs,
sorting them and reusing them as raw material.
But with all of you as well.
Because together, we are responsible
for plastic-free oceans and a clean food chain.
Dad, I know you are here today.
I am proud that you started this revolution in the beverage industry,
and together we continue this mission.
Thank you.
(Applause)