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Majid Al Futtaim Collaborates with Coca-Cola Middle East and Sparklo Furthering its Commitment to Promoting Circular Communities
The partnership will see Coca-Cola Middle East sponsor a few Reverse Vending Machines RVMs in key Carrefour locations, serving as an extension to Carrefour's existing recycling efforts.
The aim is to collect 1.8 million bottles a year, which can reduce CO ₂ emissions.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates, June 2025 : Majid Al Futtaim, which owns the exclusive rights to operate Carrefour in the UAE, announces its partnership with Coca-Cola Middle East and Sparklo, a UAE-based cleantech company, to boost Carrefour recycling efforts under the Reverse Vending Machine (RVM) initiative. This collaboration, driven by a shared commitment to building a community of eco-conscious customers and a focus on innovation, will see Coca-Cola co-operate RVMs in key Carrefour locations across the UAE, building on the programme's proven success in promoting collection and recycling and contributing to the UAE's ambitious sustainability agenda.
Carrefour's RVM initiative, powered by Sparklo's innovative technology, was launched in July 2023, and since then it has empowered customers to actively support circularity by incentivising recycling. Using the Sparklo app, users earn points for each item recycled and they can redeem the points for rewards from participating partners. Rewards include savings at Carrefour, discounted taxi rides, among others.
Based on the 2024 Sparklomats RVMs results, the partnership is projected to collect over 1.8 million plastic bottles and aluminium cans annually, with an average of over 1,000 containers per day, helping to contribute to CO₂ emissions reduction.
Commenting on the partnership, Jean-Luc Graziato, Chief Operating Officer at Majid Al Futtaim – Retail , said: 'We are committed to playing an active role in advancing sustainability across the UAE, in support of the nation's vision for environmental leadership and its ambitious goals around waste reduction and responsible consumption. Our partnership with Coca-Cola and Sparklo is a powerful example of how collaboration can drive scalable impact. By leveraging advanced technologies, we are transforming our retail spaces to serve greater purpose; empowering customers to actively participate in building a circular economy.'
'At Coca-Cola, we aim to grow our business in ways that drive positive change and build a more sustainable future for our planet. Through our partnership with Majid Al Futtaim and Sparklo, we are making it easier for people in the UAE to recycle and contribute to circularity and sustainability. This initiative is part of our broader efforts to improve waste collection and strengthen local recycling infrastructure, helping to build a circular economy where packaging is collected, recycled, and reused,' said Andrew Buckingham, Vice President and General Manager at The Coca-Cola Company Middle East.
'We're glad to see our joint initiative with Majid Al Futtaim now supported by Coca-Cola. It shows a shared commitment to making it simple and engaging for people to recycle bottles and cans. Together, we're building the infrastructure to collect every bottle in the UAE and show what real progress on sustainability can look like,' added Maxim Kaplevich, Founder and CEO of Sparklo.
The collaboration also supports the ambitions of the UAE Circular Economy Policy 2031, which aims to divert 75% of waste from landfills by 2030 by promoting recycling, reusing material, and reducing reliance on raw resources. Through the initiative, Carrefour, Coca-Cola, and Sparklo are accelerating the UAE's transition towards a waste-free, circular economy.
The co-operated machines are located across Carrefour stores at Ibn Battuta Mall, City Centre Mirdiff, City Centre Deira, and Burjuman Mall in Dubai, and Dalma Mall in Abu Dhabi.
About Majid Al Futtaim Retail:
Founded in 1992, Majid Al Futtaim is an Emirati-owned, diversified lifestyle conglomerate operating shopping malls, communities, retail and leisure outlets, across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. The Group employs 43,000 people, with owned assets valued at US$19 billion, and has the highest credit rating ( BBB) among privately held corporates in the region.
Majid Al Futtaim Retail holds the exclusive rights to operate Carrefour across 12 markets in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, with a network of over 390 stores. It is also the owner and operator of HyperMax, a new grocery retail brand with 44 locations in Jordan and Oman. Additionally, the Group operates Supeco, its latest grocery retail concept—a low-cost hybrid model that combines a traditional supermarket with a wholesale warehouse—across 15 locations in Egypt, and Myli, the Group's health and beauty brand, operating in 12 stores across Asia and North Africa.
To meet the growing needs of its diverse customer base and communities, Majid Al Futtaim Retail offers omnichannel customer experiences tailored to the needs of the modern consumer. Through its innovative physical and digital customer services, Majid Al Futtaim Retail provides access to an unrivalled choice of quality products, at unbeatable value for over 700,000 customers it serves daily.
Aligning with the Group's commitment to support local economies, local producers and suppliers, Majid Al Futtaim Retail resources over 80 percent of its products from the region.
About Coca-Cola Middle East:
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a total beverage company, with products sold in more than 200 countries and territories.
The Coca-Cola Company Middle East operation spans across 12 markets including GCC countries, Iraq, Yemen and the Levant. With 23 bottling plants across the region, our portfolio includes nearly 20 sparkling soft drink brands including Coca-Cola, Sprite, Fanta, Thums Up, QJ, Canada Dry and Schweppes; our hydration and juice brands include Arwa, Crystal, Al Waha, Dasani minera, Safia, Minute Maid, Cappy, Fuze Tea and glaceau smartwater.
Our company's purpose is to refresh the world and make a difference and we're constantly transforming our portfolio to bring innovative new products with something for everyone. We also seek to positively impact people's lives, communities and the planet through our sustainability initiatives – from water replenishment to waste management, recycling to women empowerment initiatives while we continue to create a rewarding ecosystem for our employees, partners, consumers and customers.
About Sparklo:
Sparklo is a global UAE-based cleantech company that revolutionises the recycling industry and encourages sustainable practices worldwide. Through its innovative reverse vending machines (RVMs) known as Sparklomats, the company motivates users to recycle plastic bottles and aluminium cans by offering engaging rewards. Sparklo's cutting-edge software and hardware solutions utilise AI and machine learning to optimise recycling processes, making it fun and easy for individuals to contribute to a sustainable lifestyle. With a growing network of more than 250,000 users in the UAE alone, Sparklo collects over 200,000 bottles and cans daily. The company operates in over ten countries, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Vietnam, India, Thailand, Kazakhstan, and Georgia.
