Of this, only around 9 per cent were recycled, with 33 per cent being sent to sanitary landfills and open dumpsites. The other 760,000 tonnes of mismanaged plastic leaked into the open environment. Antonia “Toni” Yulo Loyzaga of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) during her opening remarks at the Rethinking Plastics: EPR Paving the Way Towards Circularity forum, which took place in May 2023. The choice is ours and we must act now.”Co-presented by Nestlé Philippines and the DENR – and organised by Eco-Business – the Rethinking Plastics: EPR Paving the Way Towards Circularity series of dialogues aims to spur conversation about the Philippines’ staggering waste problem and how the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Act of 2022 can be a roadmap to a genuine circular plastic economy in the country. It aims to show obliged enterprises, waste diverters and other stakeholders that the implementation of an EPR scheme is feasible.