Manila — Today, The Coca-Cola Company announced its goal of having 25% of all beverages globally across its portfolio of brands sold in refillable/returnable glass or plastic bottles, or refillable containers, by 2030. This decision comes as #breakfreefromplastic members worldwide have spent years demanding the company reduce its reliance on plastic packaging.
According to the #breakfreefromplastic global brand audits conducted by thousands of volunteers each year, The Coca-Cola Company has consistently been the world's top plastic polluter. Our 2021 global brand audit volunteers found nearly 20,000 Coca-Cola branded products, representing more pollution than the next two top polluters combined—as has been the case every year since 2019. In addition, their unsustainable reliance on single-use plastic packaging has caused untold environmental damage and harm to communities.
Emma Priestland, Global Corporate Campaigns Coordinator for the Break Free From Plastic movement, said: “Coke’s announcement that they are expanding their reusable packaging target globally is definitely a step in the right direction. The company’s string of broken promises in the past, however, compels us to welcome this announcement with some skepticism. Given their resources and colossal plastic pollution footprint, we believe that the company can come up with more aggressive targets and be more transparent about how they intend to implement these commitments. We hope that other companies will also follow Coke’s lead and set reusable packaging targets.”
Mirko Moskat, Zero Waste Coordinator for Taller Ecologista in Argentina, and a Brand Audit Leader, said: “Today’s announcement is a demonstration of the tireless work that communities such as mine from around the world have done in pressuring corporations to address the devastating impacts of single-use plastics systemically. We hope Coca-Cola keeps up this commitment and moves away from its reliance on single-use plastic packaging.”
The Coca-Cola Company is one of more than 70 signatories that recently signed a statement calling for an ambitious global treaty that addresses the issue of plastic pollution. This month, national governments and multinational actors will gather for the next session of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2), presenting the international community with a unique opportunity to make substantial decisions on the issue.
#breakfreefromplastic members, allies, and changemakers are calling for a legally binding Global Plastics Treaty to demand governments agree to a mandate coming out of UNEA-5.2 with specific legally-binding provisions and obligations covering the entire life cycle of plastics—from extraction, production, use, and disposal to remediation. It’s time for governments to prioritize the health of people and the planet over profit and corporate greed.
Press Contacts:
- Asia & the Pacific: Jed Alegado, Jed@breakfreefromplastic.org +(63) 917 607 0248 & Eah Antonio, Eah@breakfreefromplastic.org
- Europe: Bethany Spendlove Keeley Bethany@breakfreefromplastic.org
- United States: Brett Nadrich, Brett@breakfreefromplastic.org +1 (929) 269-4480
- Global Press Contact: Caro Gonzalez, Global Communications Lead, Break Free From Plastic, Caro@breakfreefromplastic.org +1 (646) 991-1013
About Break Free From Plastic – #breakfreefromplastic is a global movement envisioning a future free from plastic pollution. Since its launch in 2016, more than 2,000 organizations and 11,000 individual supporters from across the world have joined the movement to demand massive reductions in single-use plastics and push for lasting solutions to the plastic pollution crisis. BFFP member organizations and individuals share the shared values of environmental protection and social justice and work together through a holistic approach to bring about systemic change. This means tackling plastic pollution across the whole plastics value chain—from extraction to disposal—focusing on prevention rather than cure and providing effective solutions. www.breakfreefromplastic.org
