1. Coca-Cola: "Coca-Cola is the Top Global Polluter of 2021, using 3Mn tonnes of virgin plastics a year."
Article Extract: Coca-Cola claims 90% of its packaging is currently recyclable where infrastructure exists7;p4. Unfortunately, 91% of plastics worldwide end up in landfills10, which means that in spite of CC's recyclable design, 3.08Mn t of the company's plastics are landfilled.
In 2021, Coca-Cola pledged to introduce recycled plastic bottles and consume 50% recycled material in its bottles and cans by 20309. The company also developed the first 100% plant-based bottle prototype11. Despite CC's efforts, Coca-Cola was named the #1 Top Global Polluter of 2021 based on a study that analyzed 330,493 pieces of plastic6;p1-3. Since 2018, the recorded plastic by the company has more than doubled, showing the company's initiatives have had little impact6;p19.
CC's plastic waste is nearly 1% of global annual plastic production and equals the waste generated by 12.5Mn people a year12.