The Coca-Cola Company announced on Thursday that it will aim to have a quarter of its packaging globally reusable by 2030, a move hailed by environmental groups that have been critical of the soft-drink maker for contributing to global plastic pollution.
Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Nestlé have been accused of making "zero progress" on plastic waste reduction after being named the world's top plastic polluters for the third year in a row, according to a 2020 report by The Guardian.
Based on the annual report released in October by the global coalition Break Free From Plastic, the multinational company was the world's worst plastic polluter for the fourth consecutive year in 2021.
Coca-Cola, which produces more than 120 billion plastic bottles annually, has come under fire from Greenpeace and other environmental organizations for the negative impact of its single-use plastic on the environment and communities located near petrochemical manufacturing plants and downstream of plastic waste.
"We hope that other companies will follow Coke's lead and establish targets for reusable packaging," said Emma Priestland, the group's global corporate campaign coordinator.
Reusable packaging includes containers that can be refilled with the original product by businesses or consumers, such as refillable fountain drink containers and refillable or returnable glass and plastic bottles, the cola maker explained, citing the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's reuse guidelines.
By 2020, 16% of the company's packaging would be recyclable. That year, it collected 90% of its refillable glass and plastic containers.
Coca-Cola's announcement on Thursday is "the first known goal of its kind" and represents a "welcome shift in strategy," according to fund manager Green Century Capital Management.
As You Sow, an activist investor, and Green Century filed a shareholder proposition pressuring Coca-Cola to lower single-use plastic. They are currently considering dropping their proposal.
Coca-Cola is one of over 70 signatories, including multinational corporations, to a recent statement calling for an ambitious global treaty addressing plastic pollution.
This month, national governments and multinational corporations will convene for the United Nations Environment Assembly's next session (UNEA 5.2), providing the international community with a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make significant decisions on the issue.
Meanwhile, Greenpeace USA applauds Coca-Cola for committing to making at least 25% of its packaging recyclable by 2030.
"It's fantastic to see Coca-Cola take this significant step toward global reusable packaging targets. This is a long-awaited step in the right direction that other companies must emulate in order to address the plastic pollution crisis," Kate Melges, Greenpeace USA's Global Plastics Corporate Lead, said.
