A new report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the UN Environment Programme has indicated an 'unprecedented level of transparency' on how close to 200 businesses and governments are seeking to curb plastic use or seek alternative plastics.
The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment progress report, which was unveiled at the Our Ocean Conference in Oslo last week, shows that companies are pledging to increase the use of recycled plastic in packaging by more than five-fold by 2025.
This is equivalent to keeping 25 million barrels of oil in the ground each year, the report says.
Among the firms leading the way are Unilever, Mars, Incorporated, and PepsiCo, the report says, which have all announced 'significant reductions' in virgin plastic use by 2025.
Taking Action
"Around the world, people are calling for businesses and governments to take action to stop plastic pollution," commented Sander Defruyt, New Plastics Economy lead at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. "Leading businesses and governments stepped forward by signing the Global Commitment and we can now see promising early progress.
"This includes major commitments to reduce the use of virgin plastic, the introduction of reuse pilot projects, and unprecedented demand for recycled plastic in packaging. But there is a long way to go and it is crucial those efforts are accelerated and scaled, and more businesses and governments take action to eliminate plastic pollution at the source."
Increased Efforts
On average, around 60% of business signatories’ plastic packaging is reusable, recyclable or compostable today, the report finds, with efforts underway to achieve 100% by 2025.
Government signatories include France, Rwanda, the UK, and the cities of São Paulo (Brazil) and Austin (USA), which are putting in place policy measures including extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes and bans on certain plastic types.
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
