A show of commitment / This unusual brand play is a build on Corona’s longstanding war on plastic. Since 2018 it has worked with Parley for the Oceans to analyse its entire supply chain and identify areas where it can reduce reliance on plastic further, and as a brand is known for its provocative PR stunts that raise awareness of plastic pollution, such as touring a wave made of plastic garbage around the world, or erecting a wall of plastic that obstructed people from accessing Ipanema beach in Rio de Janeiro. In 2019 it replaced the plastic rings on its beer cans with plant-based materials that aren’t harmful to wildlife if ingested and made the design open source for other brands to replicate. That year, Corona also launched Losing Blue, a campaign by Leo Burnett Mexico, where it altered the blue bottom of its beer cans to visualise how polluted Mexico's beaches are.
Corona has pledged to protect over 100 islands globally that are at risk of ocean plastic pollution and used existing experiential events – such as the Corona Sunsets festivals – as platforms to educate more than 350,000 people a year on the importance of protecting the oceans. While one four-hour contest to collect plastic from the Pacific in Mexico may seem like a drop in the ocean, it’s actually an important awareness-raising exercise that reframes ocean plastic as a potential source of income for local communities who could work with México Ricicla (or other recycling partners) in the long term.
Trash as treasure / Although the agency insists that México Ricicla is in talks with local fishermen to establish a more formal and long-term arrangement, the Plastic Fishing tournament has PR value as a one-off stunt. Firstly, the cognitive dissonance of fishermen pulling out trash from the sea, rather than fresh fish, is a striking reminder of the issue at hand. Secondly, the remuneration participants received for ‘catching’ plastic – the same as they would receive for catching fish for a month – reframes waste as something of value and therefore creates an incentive to clean up the ocean.
By putting in the grunt work – overseeing the physical removal of plastic from the sea – Corona earns the right to do the more celebratory brand building around beaches, like its Sunsets festivals. It’s in Corona’s interest to protect Mexico’s beaches as they are, in a way, a distinctive brand asset. Just as beer brand Heineken launched the Shutter Ads campaign to help keep the bars and pubs that sell its product afloat during global lockdowns, and Guinness’ Raising the Bar initiative has invested millions into supporting the on-trade, Corona is endeavouring to protect the beaches with which its brand is so strongly connected.
