CEBU CITY – The recent devastation brought by storm "Ondoy" in Luzon and other similar calamities that hit other parts of the country recently has led the Philippine Retailers Association in Cebu (PRA-Cebu) to highly consider advocating for “green retailing” among its members.

“Retailers should not wait for tragedies similar to storm "Ondoy" to happen in order to heed the call of ‘green retailing,’ or else the next generation would suffer,” said PRA-Cebu Chairman, Jay Aldeguer said.

Aldeguer zeroed in on the elimination of plastic materials by retailers, as a major initiative to create environmental awareness. “This would mean not using plastic bags to wrap or package their items,” he underlined.

He said, among the things that retailers can do at once is to look at their peripheral components since these can be addressed more easily than their core product. An example, said Aldeguer, is the use of less plastic to wrap or package items.

He commended the efforts of large retail companies and powerful brands such as the SM and Ayala malls now leaning towards eco-friendliness.

Aldeguer stressed that green retailing should be taken rather seriously and be made the subject of legislation.

In order to intensify the green retailing advocacy, he said PRA-Cebu can discuss courses of action that can bring about a transition toward sustainable practices during the group’s second general membership meeting Wednesday, October 7.

“Ideally, green retailing should go past the trend phase and become embedded in the hearts of retailers and consumers,” Aldeguer said.

Likewise, he encouraged end-users to bring about change in retail practices by putting pressure on stores to adopt eco-friendly methods and materials. “Consumers should also help create the demand so that the whole green retailing campaign can go full circle.”