The Changing Markets Foundation recently released a new report, naming and shaming the world’s worst plastic waste offenders. The report, “Talking Trash: The Corporate Playbook of False Solutions,” states that the companies involved are actively taking steps to obstruct and undermine legislative solutions aimed at tackling an unprecedented global plastic waste crisis. In particular, it’s highly critical of voluntary commitments from the world’s largest plastic producers, which are being used as a tactic to derail and delay solutions, while governments and consumers alike are distracted by empty promises and false solutions.
Of the top eight plastic producers on the planet, five are American. The report focused on companies that took the steps of announcing the amount of plastic they produce. Coca-Cola was named as the company with the largest plastic footprint on Earth with 2.9 million metric tonnes of plastic packaging produced annually, while its biggest competitor, Pepsico, comes second with 2.3 million metric tonnes. Switzerland’s Nestlé is in third place with 1.7 million metric tonnes.
The report outlines how the industry in the United States has successfully managed to shift the blame for plastic waste on to consumers and the authorities, while higher rates of recycling are being cited as an excuse to produce even more plastic.
