Campaigners have denounced the soft drinks sector for failing to prevent single-use plastic bottles polluting the seas.
Greenpeace surveyed the plastic footprints and policies of the top six global soft drinks brands, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Suntory, Danone, Dr Pepper Snapple and Nestlé. Their inaction on the issue was ‘woeful’, it concluded in a report of its findings.
It found that five of the companies sold more than two million tonnes of plastic bottles combined each year, an amount that increased to 3.6 million tonnes when all other plastic packaging was included. The figures do not include that largest brand, Coca-Cola, which did not disclose its plastics use, Greenpeace said.
Overall the companies studied use a combined average of just 6.6% recycled plastic in their bottles, despite the containers they produce are fully recyclable and that each firm has policies to encourage customers to recycle.
The survey also found that:
- none of the companies have commitments, targets or timelines to reduce amount of single-use plastic bottles they use;
- two of the companies currently have no global targets to increase recycled material in their plastic bottles, and none are aiming for 100% recycled content in an ambitious timeframe;
- four firms do not consider the impact of plastic bottles on oceans in their product design and development processes;
- over the past ten years, use of refillable bottles by the soft drinks industry has been consistently falling, replaced by more single-use plastic; and
- four of the companies had a global policy opposing the introduction of deposit return schemes on drinks containers, which have boosted recycling and collection rates to more than 80% across the world, and more than 98% in Germany.
Louise Edge, senior oceans campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: ‘It’s not good enough for the biggest soft drinks companies in the world to pump out millions of tonnes of throwaway bottles and then blame everyone but themselves for their environmental impact.’
Soft drinks companies should phase out single-use plastic, embrace reusable packaging and make sure the remainder is made from 100% recycled content, she added.
A spokesperson for Coca-Cola said plastic accounted for 24% of the 171,000 tonnes of packaging materials used each year. In the UK, its plastic bottles contain 25% recycled material and the company has a target to increase this to 40% by 2020, she said.
‘Tackling marine litter requires collaboration between industry, campaign groups, governments and communities. We are open to engaging in constructive dialogue with any experts with good ideas to reduce litter and improve recycling,’ the spokesperson said. She confirmed that Coca-Cola is reviewing its sustainability strategy and will publish its plans in June.
Plastic pollution in the ocean has come under increasing scrutiny, with mounting evidence of harm to human and acquatic health. Scientists have estimated that there are more than five trillion pieces of plastic in oceans and microplastics have been found in oysters, mussels and fish.
Plastic production is set to double in the next 20 years and quadruple by 2050, according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, with packaging already accounting for a quarter of the 245 million tonnes of plastic used globally each year.
Gavin Partington, director general of the British Soft Drinks Association, said: ‘All plastic bottles are 100% recyclable so it is important that consumers are encouraged to dispose of bottles responsibly.
‘However we recognise more needs to be done to increase recycling and reduce littering. We want to work with campaigners, central and local government and other companies in the supply chain to support action that achieves these aims.’
The association did not respond to further questions about use of recycled plastic and phasing out single-use plastic bottles.
