Grab Aims Zero Packaging Waste in Nature by 2040
Grab Holdings Limited has set a new goal under its Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) commitments. The goal is to address Southeast Asia's packaging waste issue and achieve zero packaging waste by 2040.
Cheryl Goh, Grab's Group Head of Marketing and Sustainability, acknowledges that food packaging waste is an inherent by-product of their food delivery platform. The company is committed to actively seeking sustainable and inclusive solutions by working with various stakeholders in the value chain, including regulators, packaging manufacturers, waste management firms, merchant partners, and consumers. This involves introspection and collaboration to drive change.
Grab has formulated a two-phase approach to achieve its waste target. During Phase 1, the company aims to reduce overpackaging and replace single-use plastics with compostable alternatives.
Additionally, Grab will develop reverse logistics mechanisms to encourage the adoption of reusable and recyclable packaging. This builds on the company's existing efforts since 2019 to encourage customers to decline single-use cutlery for their food delivery orders.
These measures have saved over 23,800 tonnes of waste, with 898 million sets of cutlery weighing 8,088 tonnes saved in 2022 alone. Phase 1 will continue until 2030 to divert 30% of plastic packaging.
During Phase 2, Grab will concentrate on creating long-term, scalable solutions to support a circular economy. This will involve implementing proper waste collection mechanisms and promoting the use of reusable packaging, in line with the company's goal of achieving zero packaging waste in nature by 2040.
Grab's recent ESG report includes data on its impact in 2022 across various priority areas. The report highlights how Grab continues to offer opportunities for everyday entrepreneurs to build sustainable livelihoods.
According to the report, 30% of Grab driver-partners surveyed were not earning an income before joining Grab. However, today, 72% of Grab's driver-partners earn from more than one service on the Grab platform.
The company has also been helping small businesses get online and onboarded 658,000 small merchant partners in 2022. Small businesses on the Grab platform saw a 26% increase in their monthly earnings on average after one year of being on the Grab platform.
Additionally, Grab provides upskilling opportunities to its partners, and 1 million partners took at least one upskilling course offered via Grab in 2022. Overall, Grab partners earned US$10.6 billion through the platform in 2022, a 19% increase from the year before.
Ensuring safety on its platform remains a top priority for Grab. The company reports that in 2022, 99.99% of Grab rides occurred without incident, and Grab rides were 5.5x safer regionally when compared to Singapore Land Transport Authority's QoS standards. The company also rolled out new safety features in 2022, including AudioProtect and QuietRide.
Grab is also making strides towards carbon neutrality and has reduced 48,000 tonnes of emissions in 2022 through zero or low-emission modes of transport as well as through optimisations such as batched deliveries and shared rides.
In Singapore, approximately 50% of Grab deliveries are made on zero-emission modes of transportation. Additionally, Grab has around 13,000 low emission vehicles as part of its rental fleet regionally, including a 100% two-wheel EV fleet in Indonesia, where Grab is the largest EV ride-hailing fleet operator.
If you want to know more about Grab's latest ESG report, you can visit here. The full report can also be downloaded here.
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Source: Business Wire
