As part of a report calling on global companies to disclose their plastic footprint, Coca-Cola has made public that they produce 3 million tonnes of plastic packaging annually.
This amounts to 108 billion 500ml PET bottles, the equivalent to over 20% of the 500 billion bottles produced yearly, according to The Guardian. The global brand shared this data with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, who, through their New Plastic Economy initiative, aim to bring together key stakeholders and build momentum toward a circular economy for plastics.
Coca-Cola joins over 350 other organizations that have committed through the New Plastic Economy to make real strides towards their vision of this economy by 2025. They join 6 of the top 10 consumer goods companies, 4 of the top 10 plastic packaging manufacturers, and 5 of the top 15 retailers. While many large companies have signed on to this commitment, Coca-Cola is among only 35 companies publicly disclosing their plastic packaging production and use.
According to the report, Coca-Cola has set a target of 100% recyclable packaging by 2025—they are currently at 87%—will have 50% recycled material in their packaging by 2030, and are piloting refillable programs such as Coca-Cola Freestyle.
While all signatories making commitments to reduce the amount of plastic used in packaging is a significant move towards progress, Coca-Cola and others’ public disclosure is lauded as a critical step towards transparency, and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation encourages other firms to follow their lead.
