The unprecedented scale highlights how fast the country’s waste problem is growing, as every cleanup yields more plastic and discarded household items.
“Protecting our bodies of water has long been a major advocacy of San Miguel,” said SMC chair and CEO Ramon S. Ang.
“I’m glad that this has become ingrained in our company culture that our employees nationwide are volunteering by the thousands, and getting personally involved,” he added.
Workforce on the frontlines
Last year, SMC’s Team Malasakit volunteers collected 36.3 metric tons of waste from 23 sites, up from 29 tons in 2023.
This year, Manila Bay alone is expected to draw 800 volunteers at daybreak, with teams fanning out simultaneously across Pangasinan, Laguna, Cebu, Zamboanga, and more.
Sachets, appliances
The company said all collected debris—from sachets and fishing nets to cigarette butts and appliances—will be sorted, weighed, and recorded to help track the ecological footprint of marine waste.
The 135th anniversary of the conglomerate adds symbolic weight to the campaign, with advance cleanups already held earlier this month in Bataan, Batangas, Quezon, Camarines Sur, and Davao.
Bigger cleanups ups expose larger issues
Executives stress that these volunteer brigades complement SMC’s broader sustainability programs, including its Better Rivers PH project. That initiative has cleared over 8.6 million metric tons of silt and waste from 164 kilometers of river channels in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.
The program has delivered tangible benefits, helping floodwaters recede faster in vulnerable communities. But officials also acknowledge the sobering reality: the more sites they cover, the more trash they find.
By mobilizing its workforce at this scale, SMC aims not just to clear coasts but to spark lasting behavioral change.
With 17 more cleanups scheduled before year-end, the company says this year’s mobilization is proof of both its commitment and the enormity of the waste crisis.
—Edited by Miguel R. Camus
