Coca-Cola plan to increase reusable bottles concerns advocacy group

The Coca-Cola Co., Atlanta, has announced plans to increase the share of its beverages delivered in returnable/refillable containers. The company says it is committed to selling 25 percent of beverages in refillable bottles by 2030, up from 16 percent. 

The pledge is in response to a pending shareholder proposal filed by As You Sow and Green Century Capital Management, asking the company to set stronger refillable goals.

“We are pleased to see the company increase its commitment to reusable bottles as a proven method to reduce single-use plastic waste and promote a circular economy for packaging,” says Conrad MacKerron, senior vice president at As You Sow. “This action has the potential to substantially reduce the amount of single-use plastic bottles used, many of which end up as ocean plastic pollution.”

Coca-Cola has been named the world's worst plastic polluter for the fourth year in a row, according to Break Free From Plastic's brand audit. Nearly half of the company’s packaging consists of single-use PET plastic bottles, generating 3 million tons of plastic packaging annually, the equivalent of producing 200,000 bottles per minute. Single-use bottles are far more likely to be improperly disposed of and become ocean pollution, harming marine life, the organization says. However, Coca-Cola says it has long operated significant refillable bottle operations in many markets. 

As You Sow cites a recent analysis by Oceana, an oceans advocacy group based in Washington, indicating a considerable potential to reduce ocean plastic by increasing refill market share. The report concluded that boosting the share of refillable bottles by 10 percent in all coastal countries in place of single-use PET bottles could reduce plastic bottle marine plastic pollution by 22 percent.

However, Oceana says it is concerned with Coca-Cola's new plans as it lacks transparency. Coca-Cola's announcement lacked details on exactly what the 25 percent target represents and metrics indicating how this may contribute to reducing the company’s reliance on single-use plastic and its carbon footprint, according to Oceana.

“Coca-Cola has done the right thing for the oceans by prioritizing reusable and refillable packaging as a core strategy in their efforts to reduce the company’s environmental impact,” says Dana Miller, Oceana’s director of strategic initiatives. “This is a step in the right direction, but to measure this impact and hold Coca-Cola accountable to their commitments, greater transparency is needed, and so Oceana is calling on the company to provide more details.”

Despite Oceana’s concerns over the announcement, other environmental groups like Greenpeace USA, Washington, have voiced support for the company. 

“It’s great to see Coca-Cola take this significant step to set global targets for reusable packaging,” says Kate Melges, Greenpeace USA global plastics corporate lead. “This is a long-awaited move in the right direction that other companies need to follow to tackle the plastic pollution crisis.” 

Melges says Coke can build on this leadership move by doubling the commitment to 50 percent reusables by 2030. 

“By embracing reuse, Coke has an opportunity to lead big brands out of their reliance on single-use plastic packaging into the low-carbon, zero-waste economy that our planet, communities and climate desperately need,” she says.

Coca-Cola is one of more than 70 signatories, including multinationals, that recently signed a statement calling for an ambitious global treaty that addresses the issue of plastic pollution.