Plastic pollution is on track to more than double by 2040—equivalent to nearly a garbage truck full of plastic entering the environment every second—according to research from the U.S. nonprofit, The Pew Foundation. Nevertheless, world leaders have so far failed to translate concern into action, stalling on the global treaty they backed at the 2022 United Nations Environment Assembly.
Six rounds of negotiations have failed to deliver progress. When the negotiating committee reconvenes in Geneva on February 7, the risk remains that petrostates will once again derail talks, reflecting plastic’s deep ties to fossil-fuel byproducts.
As international negotiations fizzle, pressure is increasingly falling on companies. Across 34 countries, an average of 70% of consumers support a global plastic treaty. For businesses, cutting plastic is becoming a matter of regulatory preparedness and commercial risk, not only consumer sentiment. In the European Union, packaging sustainability and labelling requirements already apply across the full lifecycle.
Plastic’s ubiquity, however, makes reduction difficult. That complexity is why our seven-step guide focuses on the practical actions that businesses can take now.
To understand the scale and main sources of a company’s plastic problem, the first step is to measure its entire output of plastic waste by analyzing waste streams and volumes. Businesses can then develop targeted strategies, either overseen internally by sustainability managers or outsourced to specialist waste management auditors.
Large companies that really want to make a public statement can sign up to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Global Commitment to cut plastic waste. It is now open for its second phase, with signatories committing to set 2030 targets and publicly report on their progress.
Recycled plastic may seem like an easy solution, but it comes with complex issues that explain why only 9% of all plastic ever made has been recycled. To begin with, plastic cannot be recycled indefinitely. Each time it is processed, the polymer chains break down, resulting in a weaker material with elevated toxin levels. Additionally, there are many types of plastic, so the cost of sorting and cleaning them is high, making recycled plastic more expensive than virgin plastic.
Moving from single-use to refill-and-reuse packaging models is one of the most effective ways to reduce plastic pollution and a significant economic opportunity, with the market projected to grow by over $7 billion by 2029. However, it remains niche, with independent retailers and businesses leading the charge, while larger brands lag. For instance, in the U.K., major supermarkets—including Aldi, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons and Waitrose—joined the Refill Coalition in 2022 to pilot in-store refill stations, but all except Aldi left prematurely, citing low consumer engagement and high operational costs.
Forward-thinking companies can get ahead of the curve. A feasible starting point for hospitality and travel brands is to install water fountains instead of selling bottled water. More information is available from the nonprofit Refill.
Tackling plastic waste across the broader value chain requires mapping the entire lifecycle of plastics—from fossil fuel extraction and resin production to manufacturing, use, and end-of-life disposal. It is undoubtedly a significant challenge, but how do we identify and eliminate plastic waste hotspots?
To make this process easier and more accurate, waste data management platforms are increasingly capable of automating and streamlining plastic waste collection, tracking and recycling across supply chains. For example, U.K.-based Greyparrot recently launched the first AI platform to bridge the information gap between brand owners and waste management systems.
Independent certification is a means of communicating integrity. Plastic Free certification empowers companies to ditch plastic. It takes companies on a journey, grading them from E to A while helping them improve their ratings. For unavoidable plastics, social enterprise OceanCycle only certifies recycled plastics that are ethically produced from plastic bottles littering coastal communities without public recycling infrastructure. The Ocean Bound Plastic certification program is similar.
Effective communications are a core component of any plastic reduction strategy. With consumers skeptical of green claims in advertising and unlikely to respond positively to broad-brush claims, a carefully crafted communications strategy is essential. To avoid greenwashing or greenhushing, transparency and responsibility should be its foundations.
This means focusing messaging on authentic data and tangible results, while being honest about obstacles and efforts to overcome them. At the same time, a human-focused, audience-tailored storytelling approach is required to bring social and environmental impacts to life.
Our plastic consumption has reached crisis levels. Humans only figured out how to make synthetic plastic in the early decades of the twentieth century, but we have since produced so much that scientists have found it on the top of Mount Everest, in the deepest ocean trench and permeating the air that we breathe. While politicians negotiate a global treaty to eliminate plastic pollution, forward-thinking businesses can seize the opportunity and take the lead.