Virgin Sport & Just Goods Team Up On London 10k Anti-plastic Drive
Will Smith and Richard Branson have announced a new partnership between their respective JUST Goods and Virgin Sport brands to replace all single-use plastic bottles at the finish line with JUST Water cartons during Sunday’s ASICS London 10K.
The eco-friendly initiative will also result in an additional 40,000 single-use plastic bottles being removed from the route.
Some 500,000 single-use plastic bottles will be removed from all Virgin Sport events in 2019, including the Hackney Half Marathon and the Oxford Half Marathon.
The initiative forms part of Virgin Sport’s pledge to create the most eco-friendly mass-participation events in the UK. Virgin Sport claims to be the first sport events company in the UK to implement 100% recyclable cups.
JUST Chief Executive Ira Laufer said: “JUST is incredibly proud to join efforts alongside Virgin Sport at the ASICS London 10K to reduce plastic at the event. Together, we aim to inspire and show that a small change, such as changing your bottled water to a more sustainable option, is something we all can do to create a positive impact on our planet.”
Virgin Sport Chief Executive Jessica Frey added: “Virgin Sport and JUST Water have the shared objective of reducing single-use plastic and both businesses were conceived during a sporting activity. Will, Jaden (Smith, Will’s son) and Richard all share a passion for sport and there is an added layer of looking after the wellbeing of the planet.”
In total, 16,000 single-use plastic bottles will be eliminated at the finish line and replaced by recyclable JUST Water cartons, which are made mostly from paper.
