Bali, Indonesia, October 29 – Greenpeace has cautiously welcomed the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment announced today by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, saying that it allows for too much flexibility. Coke, Danone, Mars, Pepsi and Unilever are among the 200+ signatories that have pledged to tackle plastic pollution, though Greenpeace, a member of the Break Free From Plastic (BFFP) movement, has urged these corporations to show concrete actions that focus on reduction.
In response to today’s EMF announcement, Greenpeace Indonesia Global Project Leader Ahmad Ashov said:
“While elements of the EMF Global Commitment are moving in the right direction, the problem is that companies are given the flexibility to continue prioritising recycling over reduction and reuse. Corporations are not required to set actual targets to reduce the total amount of single-use plastics they are churning out. They can simply continue with business as usual after signing the commitment.
“Our recent report ‘A Crisis of Convenience,’ reveals that 11 of the largest consumer goods companies’ current plans allow them to increase their use of single-use plastics and none have set clear elimination or reduction targets.
“If we continue down this current path, global plastic production will double in twenty years and quadruple by 2050 [1]. Unless corporations are held accountable to ambitious and mandatory reduction targets, we won’t be able to tackle the problem at the source and efforts like the EMF pledge will not change much.”
Greenpeace is calling on companies like Nestlé, Unilever, Coca-Cola and Pepsi to show true leadership and deliver on all of the following actions:
- Set ambitious and accountable targets to reduce single-use plastics
- Act immediately to eliminate excessive and problematic plastic packaging
- Prioritise investment in reuse and alternative delivery systems
- Embrace transparency and report annually on their plastic footprint
Photo and video here:
https://media.greenpeace.org/collection/27MZIFJWMJGLA
Notes:
[1] http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_New_Plastics_Economy.pdf
Contacts:
Greenpeace International Press Desk, [email protected], phone: +31 (0) 20 718 2470 (available 24 hours)
Single-use plastic bottles are one of the worst offenders. They are killing precious seabirds like toroa (albatross) and they wind up in landfills or incinerated offshore. Recycling is not working. To get serious about plastic we need to make Coca Cola turn off the plastic tap.