A cross-media campaign to explain, in a clear and easy-to-understand way, how actions such as consuming tomatoes in a steel tin can be a conscious and sustainable choice: this is the goal of “Lezioni di Etichetta”, the special format broadcast on Rai television channels (Rai 1, Rai 2 and Rai 3), on RaiPlay and Rai digital channels, on Radio Rai (Radio 1, Radio 2 and Radio 3), and finally in cinemas on the Rai Pubblicità circuit. Featuring clear and captivating graphics, the video lingers on the label of the steel can of tomatoes, analysed and described by an off-screen narrator, emphasising the valuable information it contains through a close-up effect, amplified by a magnifying glass. Thus we discover that the tomatoes are processed and packaged 24 hours after harvesting, and that their origin is always indicated. We also learn that the steel packaging, a genuine and “natural safe”, protects from light and air, preserving the unique taste of the “Red Gold” of Mediterranean cuisine; and, above all, that it is a good and sustainable choice, since steel can be 100% and infinitely recycled.
National campaigns
Lezioni di etichetta [Labelling lessons]
Capitan Acciaio [Captain Steel]
Capitan Acciaio is the travelling road show in Italian cities now in its third year. It was rated in 2018 as the best campaign in the “environmental communication” category in the latest edition of the International Grand Prix Relational Strategies. This result granted it the right to compete for a continental prize, the 2019 IMC awards, where it ranked third in the Charity/Non-profit category.
Focused on the superhero of the same name, it is divided into a territorial tour and a series of activities on social channels, involving all the protagonists of the recycling chain, from institutions to operators and citizens. Through creative activities and workshops, Capitan Acciaio has allowed RICREA to reach, inform and raise awareness, among adults and children, of the collection methods present in each Municipality, of the different types of steel packaging and of their sustainability characteristics.
Cuore Mediterraneo [Mediterranean Heart]
“Cuore Mediterraneo” is the itinerant initiative that takes place in the summer months and that stems from the partnership between RICREA and Legambiente. With Goletta Verde, the vessel of Legambiente which has been monitoring water quality and reporting environmental illegalities for over 30 years, RICREA promotes the sustainability of steel packaging and the importance of recycling in Italian ports and beaches. Alice, a very special correspondent, approached yachtsmen and swimmers to test their knowledge of steel packaging and separate waste collection.
The Cuore Mediterraneo earned RICREA the bronze medal in the “L’Italia che Comunica” [Italy that communicates] award.
Treno Verde [Green Train]
Treno Verde is the itinerant campaign promoted by Legambiente and Gruppo Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane [the Italian State Railways Group], created with the participation of the Italian Ministry of the Environment and the Protection of the Territory and the Sea. Dedicated to zero-emission mobility, the initiative offered an interactive exhibition set up in a four-carriage train, with the aim of informing citizens of the planet’s health and promoting sustainable lifestyles. Inside one of the carriages, RICREA explained to children and adults how steel packaging is collected. For more details on collection methods in the various cities included in the tour, an explanatory brochure was available for download by scanning a QR Code on the posters on the walls. In 2019, Treno Verde stopped at twelve stations: Palermo, Bari, Napoli Centrale, Roma Termini, Pescara, Arezzo, Civitanova Marche, Rimini, Padova, Genova Piazza Principe, Torino Porta Nuova and Milano Porta Garibaldi. In Genoa, Bari and Turin (cities that had hosted the itinerant initiative of the Consortium the previous year), a distinguished passenger, Capitan Acciaio, joined in and took the opportunity to take stock of separate waste collection a year later, with mayors and authorities.
Hospital Campaign
The outpatient waiting rooms of 48 hospitals in Veneto, Emilia Romagna, Lombardy and Tuscany, in the 2018/19 two-year period, showed a video with an awareness campaign on the separate collection of steel packaging, broadcast on 133 monitors in total.
Billboards were also used in 2019.
The hospitals of Verona, Bassano del Grappa, Mestre, Florence, Viareggio, Mantua, Parma, Piacenza, Ravenna and Bologna were among the ones involved.
Each hospital is accessed daily by tens of thousands patients, visitors, students, university staff and suppliers. The Policlinico Sant’Orsola Hospital alone, in Bologna, registers over 23,000 people entering every day.
Promotion of the Metal recycles forever logo
Metal Recycles Forever is the new brand that indicates the infinite recyclability of metal packaging, and therefore also of steel packaging.
“Environmental labels” have a fundamental role in facilitating the recycling of packaging. The RICREA consortium, Anfima (Italian National Association of Metallic and Similar Packaging Manufacturers), CIAL (Italian National Aluminium Packaging Consortium) and the European trade associations, united in MPE – Metal Packaging Europe – have collaborated closely in the development and dissemination of the Metal Recycles Forever brand, owned by MPE, to be applied on all metal packaging (steel and aluminium). For more on this, visit the Metal Recycles Forever website.
#Spray Sereno
In this unheard-of project RICREA joins forces with CIAL, AIA and Anfima to launch “Spray Sereno“ , an innovative social media campaign designed to educate Gen Z and Millennials on a responsible use of “aerosol cans”, more commonly known as “spray cans”, and on their correct route towards recycling.
To reach a younger audience in a simple and authentic way, “#Spray Sereno” involved emerging trappers to create exclusive tracks for the campaign. These songs use the target’s language, presenting the importance of a responsible use of aerosol cans in a creative and original way.
The campaign involves also a “spray crew”, formed by creators who are keen on sustainability, and who have been made in charge of sharing important content about the importance of a correct use of spray cans and their recycling.
To make the effects of this message even broader, many popular influencers have been involved among Gen Zers and Millennials. The campaign, shared on TikTok and Instagram, shows that awareness projects can be contemporary, creative and unconventional while contributing to spreading responsible environmental behaviors.
RICREA - A new campaign to make the world a better place
RICREA has launched its new campaign with the aim to raise awareness and inform the public about the importance of correct waste management of steel packaging. The campaign, called Recycled steel makes our world a better place, was aired from October 2023 on Radio24 and on tv channels, radio and digital Rai.
The campaign, created in collaboration with Anfima (Italian National Association of Metal Packaging Makers) and with the sponsorship of Anci (National Association of Italian Cities), was developed and produced by the agency Area ADV and planned on Rai by Black and White Comunicazione. The main topic is the circular economy: a virtuous model through which steel tins, boxes, cans, drums, pails, spray cans, caps and clasps can be turned into bicycles, benches as street furniture, rails, drinking fountains, drain covers, but also bolts, spikes, wrenches and more…
“We are proud to be launching this campaign which has the goal to spread environmental awareness about the recycling of steel packaging – states Domenico Rinaldini, RICREA consortium’s President. With the support of Anfima and ANCI we hope to reach in an effective way the general public and to share the importance of respecting the rules of waste disposal set by each Municipality. We invite the citizens to join us in this virtuous process for our Planet’s sake, in order to improve even more the excellent results we have already reached. Thanks to everyone’s cooperation and to the relentless work of who is involved in the recycling industry, Italy is top ranked in Europe: with an 80.6% of steel packaging recycle tax we have greatly passed the 70% set for 2025, and already reached the 80% set for 2030.”