Liquorland and First Choice Liquor Market will launch their annual Drop of Good campaign on 5-6 March to support Clean Up Australia’s efforts in clearing disposable face mask litter, spawned through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Building on the success of the inaugural Drop of Good campaign in 2021, 25 cents from every transaction at Liquorland and First Choice Liquor Market stores will go towards creating and distributing free Clean Up kits, to assist volunteers to clean up their local communities.
These kits include biodegradable rubbish and recycling bags, protective gloves, a high-vis vest and sharps containers to keep volunteers safe.
Team members and customers rallied behind the Drop of Good campaign in 2021, raising over $125,000 over one weekend in March, which funded Clean Up kits for close to 1,800 community and school Clean Up events around the country.
Coles Liquor general manager Operations, Steve Hugginson, said the Drop of Good campaign was an important part of the work Liquorland and First Choice Liquor Market stores did in their communities around the country.
“Our customers and team members really support our fundraising for Clean Up Australia because they understand the important work that goes on in their own local communities to clean up and maintain or restore parks, beaches and bushland,” Hugginson said.
“We have strong links with the communities we serve and by supporting Clean Up Australia we are contributing to the sustainable future of natural spaces in neighborhoods all around Australia.”
Clean Up Australia chair, Pip Kiernan, said Coles’ support for Clean Up Australia and the lead role it had played in several important initiatives spoke to its deep connections to the local communities it operates in.
“The direct support Coles’ Drop of Good campaign provides for communities is invaluable,” Kiernan said. “Keeping Australians safe during the pandemic has come at a high price for the environment, with disposable masks and single-use items now commonly found littering the country.
“The funds raised through the Drop of Good campaign will support invaluable community action, providing free Clean Up Australia materials to volunteers who can remove litter before it has a chance to impact wildlife.”
In addition to the Drop of Good campaign, Coles has raised over $700,000 for Clean Up Australia since 2018 from the sales of specially marked reusable shopping bags designed by Australian kids.
The Clean Up Australia initiative is one of many which help Coles Group meet the ambitions set out in their Sustainability Strategy, under the focus areas Together to Zero and Better Together.
These community partnerships aim to ensure positive environmental outcomes and a more sustainable future for generations of Australians.