This comes in line with Al Meera's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme as a national leading retailer, in continuation of its efforts to spread awareness of the best green practices and the importance of environmental sustainability in the short and long term, a press statement notes.
"As a pioneering national company in the field of environmental responsibility and in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Al Meera participated in this celebration with the aim to inform customers about the need to reduce the single-use plastic bags to preserve and sustain the environment, and contribute to the endeavours of achieving Qatar National Vision 2030," the statement explained.
Moreover, Al Meera raised awareness of the importance of reusable bags and the need to combat plastic pollution, as more than 100,000 reusable bags were distributed at all Al Meera branches.
Al Meera said it continues to urge consumers to participate in protecting the environment by providing machines for recycling plastic bottles and cans across its branches. Currently, these recycling machines are available at 20 Al Meera branches, with plans to increase them in phases.
To date, Al Meera has been able to recycle more than 26mn bottles and cans. The Qatari national retailer has also ensured that fruits and vegetables bags at all its branches are reusable as part of the move to gradually phase out the use of plastic bags.
Commenting on this initiative, Al Meera said: “At Al Meera, we believe in the importance of sustainability, environmental protection and preservation of our natural resources, that is why we place them as top priorities in our work and integral parts of our responsibility towards society as these are the foundations for building future societies. On this occasion, we are committed to expanding the scope of our activities and playing our role in this aspect. We distribute reusable bags not only on International Plastic Bag Free Day, but as an extension of our previous initiatives that contribute to promoting the use of paper or cloth shopping bags and the concept of sustainable purchasing.
"We are very proud of the positive impact recorded day after day because of our sustainable initiatives in line with our values, mission and the environmental pillar of Qatar National Vision 2030. Finally, we invite all members of Qatari society to adopt such practices for a better future for all.”
Al Meera continues its "unremitting effort"s to highlight the importance of preserving the environment by making sustainability a basic pillar in all its operations, launching sustainable initiatives from time to time, as well as harnessing its resources to support the initiatives launched by the entities concerned in this regard.
Al Meera distributed more than 100,000 paper shopping bags to its customers on this day last year. In addition, Al Meera launched the 'Truth Bottle' campaign to emphasise the importance of water as a vital natural resource and the need to rationalise its consumption.
As part of its unique approach to maintaining environmental sustainability, Al Meera also introduced the ‘green counters’ initiative at the Hyatt Plaza hypermarket. This is in addition to a series of previous initiatives, including recycling cartons and paper, and collecting used batteries for safe disposal that protects society from their damage through recycling machines in a number of its branches.