Coca-Cola seems to have abandoned its 2030 target, in which it pledged to recycle less plastic and reduce emissions more slowly than previously promised.
In 2022, Coca-Cola committed to selling 25% of its drinks in returnable glass or plastic bottles by 2030, or in refillable containers that could be filled at fountains or “Coca-Cola freestyle dispensers”.
The company, considered by researchers to be one of the biggest contributors to plastic pollution, has now been accused of quietly abandoning its commitment, according to The Guardian.
Shortly before this year’s negotiations on the global treaty on plastics, Coca-Cola deleted the page on its website describing this promise.
Its objectives are now set for 2035 and include using 35% to 40% recycled material in primary packaging (plastic, glass and aluminum), compared to the previous objective of at least 50% by 2030.
Coca-Cola has also reduced its recycling target for bottles and cans, now seeking to help ensure the collection of 70 to 75% of the equivalent number of bottles and cans introduced onto the market each year by 2035. Previously, the company planned to collect and recycle one bottle or can for every one sold by 2030.
Although the brand promises to continue investing in refillable packaging where infrastructure already exists, the current commitment makes no mention of its reuse objectives.
“Coca-Cola’s new policy makes it likely that many more billions of single-use plastic bottles and cups will continue to flood our waterways and seas,” he denounced. in a statement Matt Littlejohn, senior vice president of strategic initiatives at the environmental group Oceana.
“The company’s weak new promises on recycling won’t make a dent in its overall use of plastic. As the world’s number one plastic polluter – according to the Break Free From Plastic Brand Audit – Coca-Cola has a responsibility to take real responsibility for the waste and pollution it creates. Instead, it’s throwing the plastic bottle on the road and into the sea – again. Coca-Cola’s investors and governments around the world must take notice and take action to hold the company accountable,” says Matt Littlejohn.
For activists, “Coca-Cola’s latest move is a masterclass in greenwashing, abandoning previously announced reuse targets and opting to flood the planet with more plastic that they can’t even collect and recycle effectively. This only reinforces the company’s reputation as the world’s biggest plastic polluter,” said Von Hernandez, global coordinator of the Break Free from Plastic campaign group.
In addition to packaging, Coca-Cola has also replaced other environmental objectives, including those related to emissions and agriculture.
Its commitment to source all priority agricultural ingredients in accordance with its “Principles for Sustainable Agriculture”, which cover issues such as workers’ rights and forest conservation, has been abandoned. “While the company no longer has a voluntary goal for agriculture, it seeks to continue initiatives and programs with suppliers and third-party stakeholders to support the sustainable sourcing of agricultural ingredients,” reads the statement. press release released by Coca-Cola.
With regard to greenhouse gas pollution, the company had committed to reducing its emissions by 25% by 2030, starting from a baseline of 2015, the year of the Paris Agreement. Now, Coca-Cola has adjusted its objectives, stating that it intends to reduce emissions from a baseline of 2019, according to a trajectory of 1.5ºC by 2035. However, it has not set a reduction percentage.
“We remain committed to building long-term business resilience and earning our social license to operate through our evolving voluntary environmental goals,” Bea Perez, Coca-Cola’s executive vice president and global head of communications, sustainability and strategic partnerships, said in a statement. “These challenges are complex and require us to drive more effective and efficient resource allocation and work collaboratively with partners to deliver lasting positive impact,” she adds.
According to the statement, Coca-Cola expects to continue to report annually on its sustainability progress, regularly evaluate its actions and the needs of its stakeholders in order to “maintain a close alignment of the 2035 objectives with the business priorities and progress of the company”.
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