Coca Cola named the most polluting brand for a second year in a row and are now feeling the urgency of transitioning to plant-based plastics.

​Coca Cola is one of the most well-known brands of the modern world. However, these large consumer brands are contributing to a huge waste crisis. Coca Cola was named the most polluting brand in the world for a second year running.[1] Approximately 1 million plastic bottles are bought per minute, 91% of which are not recycled and a large portion of this comes frm the Coca Cola Corportation.[3] Coca Cola have now recognized the global plastic pollution problem they have contributed to and have signified their goal of transitioning to plant-based plastics.[4]

Recently Coke tried to implement a plastic bottle recycle scheme to promote consumers to reduce their waste.[1] However, this approach proved to be unsuccesful as it puts the burden of recycling on the consumer.[1] Showing clear evidence that recycling is not going to solve the problem and corporations need to urgently address the global waste crisis they have produced.[1] This problem will only be exacerbated if it is not acted on and the break free from plastic movement is ‘calling on corporations to urgently reduce their production of single-use plastic and find innovative solutions focused on alternative delivery systems that do not create pollution.'[1]

The Cola company realize the impacts of the plastic waste threat and have planned the transition to plant-based plastics to address this problem.[4]  The process of production involves a bio-refinery that breaks down sustainable plant sugars into simple chemical compounds that are restructured into plant-based plastics. [4] “This plastic has very attractive sustainability credentials because it uses no fossil fuels, and can be recycled – but would also degrade in nature much faster than normal plastics do,” says Van Aken. [4] These new plant-plastic bottles are said to appear on the market by the year 2023. So the question remains, who will be the biggest plastic polluter for the next few years?

[1]https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7636821/Coca-Cola-biggest-polluter-world.html
​[2]https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2019/nov/09/coca-cola-world-biggest-plastics-polluter-again-datablog
​[3]https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2019/10/29/coca-cola-named-the-worlds-most-polluting-brand-in-plastic-waste-audit/#45fcda1b74e0
[4]https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/may/16/the-end-of-plastic-new-plant-based-bottles-will-degrade-in-a-year