Case study · Consumer goods · Argentina

From storage to story.

The sacks carried the malt through storage. Recovered, cleaned and transformed into mate sets for Unilever managers, they return as objects that open a conversation about where they came from.

42.6 m²Burlap recovered

2Product types

5People in the process

01 · Challenge

Single-use plastic that is neither thin nor disposable.

Polypropylene burlap is woven to carry weight and survive handling. It is used once to store malt and then discarded, because being technical does not save a material from being treated as waste.

Recovering it is not difficult. Deciding that it is worth recovering is the part that takes a decision.

Unilever Argentina is one of the country's most established consumer goods companies, present in local households for decades.

02 · Strategy

Not merchandise: a narrative asset.

Unilever invested in transforming the material rather than paying for its disposal, putting the budget into craftsmanship, durability and a product with genuine material value.

01 · RECOVER

Recover, clean, recondition

The material was recovered, cleaned and reconditioned before any cutting.

02 · REDESIGN

Setting the example

A mate set given to a manager is used in front of other people, and the material is what starts the conversation.

03 · REPORT

It is not just about metrics

It is about changing the story of the material and the people behind it: the sack found a new purpose without losing its identity.

03 · Process

From the malt store to a mate set.

It is not about hiding the material or recycling it until it becomes unrecognisable. The material is the value. With creativity, innovation and a trained eye, what others see as waste can be recognised for what it still has to offer, then redesigned around a new purpose without losing the story of where it came from.

04 · Evidence

Making Impact Traceable, Transparent & Verifiable.

42.6 m² of polypropylene burlap recovered, cleaned and reconditioned into mate sets and pouches.

The figures in this case are checked and the record is managed by REZET Hub.

Collected after the malt

Used polypropylene sacks recovered at the end of storage, where a technical material stops being an asset for no reason other than habit.

Cleaned before anything is cut

42.6 m² recovered, cleaned and reconditioned, with the surface recorded before the first cut.

The inherited features

The material’s inherent properties make it ideal for water and sand: durable, waterproof and easy to clean, giving the sack a second purpose perfectly suited to the beach.

A narrative asset with a record

Output reconciled against the recorded input, so the story the object tells in a meeting is backed by a figure and not by a brochure.

Behind each of these figures there are families. The people who cut and sew in these workshops are not a line in our metrics: they are heads of family who have come through hard circumstances, and paid, skilled work is what lets them be the ones who provide.

05 · Outcome

From single-use plastic to something people talk about.

Polypropylene burlap sacks used to store malt were recovered, cleaned and reconditioned, and transformed from single-use plastic into mate sets for Unilever managers — not as merchandise, but as narrative assets. Each piece embodies the material's origin. Made by 5 people in social impact workshops.

Why repurpose

If you are going to spend money, spend it well.

Be smart about where you put your budget. Instead of buying the same merch everyone replicates, invest in merch with a true impact story.
And instead of taking the easy, often costly route of recycling by destroying the material, repurpose it. Preserve its value. Give it a second chance.