Between October and December 2023, volunteers across six locations in the Philippines collected and examined 10,801 pieces of sachet waste, a figure that represents 32 percent of the regional total gathered across four Asian countries. That number is not just a measure of litter — it reflects a packaging system designed for single use that waste management infrastructure was never built to handle. The sachets, small flexible pouches used for everything from shampoo to instant coffee, are nearly impossible to recycle due to their multi-layered composition, and they consistently rank among the most common items found in waterways and landfills.
The data comes from the #BreakFreeFromPlastic (BFFP) Regional Brand Audit report, a citizen science effort that tracked sachet pollution across India, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The Philippine audit alone identified 784 different brands selling products in this format, which points to how deeply embedded sachet packaging is in the consumer goods market. For context, the country’s struggle with plastic waste is part of a broader environmental challenge that also includes issues like heavy metal contamination in rivers, where industrial and household waste converge with similar consequences for ecosystems and public health.
Who tops the list of sachet polluters in the Philippines
The top five sachet polluters identified in the Philippine audit are Yes 2 Healthy Life (1,028 sachets), Mayora Indah (902), Procter & Gamble (889), Nestlé (771), and JG Summit Holdings (673). Many of these names are familiar — they have appeared in global brand audits dating back to 2017, consistently ranking among the top plastic polluters. What makes this year’s report different is its exclusive focus on sachets, a format that poses unique challenges compared to other single-use plastics. The report also found that sachets from food packaging constituted 86 percent of the waste collected, meaning the problem is overwhelmingly driven by the food and beverage industry.
Why sachets are a uniquely difficult waste problem
The physical properties of sachets are what make them so problematic. According to the BFFP report, multilayer sachets made up 57 percent of the total sample, while single-layer packaging accounted for 41 percent. The multiple layers — plastic, aluminum, paper — are fused together to preserve product freshness, but that same design makes mechanical recycling impossible. There is no cost-effective way to separate the materials back into usable raw inputs. As a result, these tiny packets end up in landfills, rivers, and oceans, where they break down into microplastics that enter the food chain.
The scale of the problem is not just about the number of sachets but also their size distribution. The report found that medium-sized sachets (about the size of a standard pack of tissues) made up the largest fraction at 35 percent, followed closely by small sachets at 34 percent. These dimensions mean sachets slip through the gaps in waste collection systems — they are too small to be captured by screens at recycling facilities and too light to be efficiently collected by manual waste pickers. The environmental consequences extend beyond visible litter. Sachet waste contributes to the broader crisis of marine pollution that affects fisheries and coastal communities, a cycle that ultimately impacts livelihoods and food security.
Corporate pledges versus continued reliance on sachets
Many of the companies identified in the report have made public commitments to address plastic waste. Several have pledged to make their plastic packaging reusable, recycled, or compostable by 2025. Yet the brand audit data suggests that these pledges have not translated into measurable reductions in sachet use. The same corporations that top the polluter list have been aware of the difficulties in handling sachet waste for years, according to the report. Environmental groups describe this gap between promise and practice as a double standard, particularly when companies operate in developing economies where waste management infrastructure is weakest.
The report also highlights a pattern of what it calls false solutions. Instead of phasing out sachets, some corporations have supported burning plastic waste as fuel for industrial processes like cement manufacturing. The BFFP report explicitly states that sending sachets and other plastic packaging to cement kilns is not recycling. This practice releases toxic emissions and perpetuates the cycle of fossil fuel extraction, since sachets are derived from virgin plastics. The broader context here is that unregulated waste burning is already a significant source of air pollution in the Philippines, as documented in analyses of how waste burning affects air quality in urban and peri-urban areas.
What environmental groups are demanding from government and corporations
Greenpeace and the BFFP movement have laid out specific policy demands for the Philippine government. The primary ask is a national ban on sachets and other single-use plastics, which could be achieved through three legal pathways. First, by ensuring that the Extended Producer Responsibility Act of 2022 focuses on waste avoidance and reduction, which would effectively require a ban on single-use plastics. Second, by including sachets in the list of non-environmentally acceptable products under the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, which would make their sale illegal. Third, by passing a new national law specifically banning single-use plastics.
For fast-moving consumer goods corporations, the demands are equally direct. The BFFP report calls on companies to phase out sachets entirely, disclose the type and quantity of plastic packaging they use in each market, end support for false solutions like burning plastic, and invest in reuse and refill systems. The report also emphasizes that 2,678 different brands were found selling products in sachets across the four countries surveyed, which indicates how widespread the format has become. In the Philippines alone, 784 brands were identified, meaning any solution must address not just the largest producers but the entire ecosystem of consumer goods companies that rely on this packaging model.
At the international level, environmental groups are pushing for a Global Plastics Treaty that would phase down single-use plastic production worldwide. The treaty is currently under negotiation, with talks scheduled through November 2024. Groups are calling on the Philippine government to side with communities affected by plastic pollution and support a treaty that would drastically reduce and eventually eliminate the production of sachets and other single-use plastics. The argument is that Global South countries like the Philippines bear a disproportionate burden of plastic pollution, both from domestic consumption and from waste imported from other nations.
Frequently asked questions about sachet waste in the Philippines
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What the data means for the future of plastic policy
The brand audit data makes one thing clear: sachet waste is not an accidental byproduct of consumer behavior — it is a deliberate packaging strategy employed by some of the largest corporations in the world. The fact that 784 different brands were found selling sachets in the Philippines alone suggests that the format is deeply embedded in the supply chain, particularly for low-income consumers who buy in small quantities. Any effective policy response will need to address both the supply side, through bans or extended producer responsibility, and the demand side, by making affordable alternatives available. If this was useful, you might also want to read how education and awareness campaigns are being used to combat pollution in the Philippines.
Sources
Technology solutions for pollution monitoring in the Philippines — Explores how digital tools and citizen science are being used to track environmental damage and hold polluters accountable.
New report shows ‘usual suspect’ corporations still top sachet producer list. PR Station, 2024.
Break Free From Plastic Regional Brand Audit Report identifies top plastic sachet polluters in Asia. Break Free From Plastic, 2024.
