Two new faces in the Supervisory Board
De Raad van Toezicht van de Plastic Soup Foundation verandert deze zomer van samenstelling.
Coca-cola turns 180 degrees: ‘for optimal recycling, deposits are indispensable’
9 September 2020
Almost all Coca-Cola brands in the Netherlands and Norway will be sold in bottles made of 100% recycled PET in 2021. Sweden is the only country in the world that has already done so.
In the Netherlands next year, small bottles will also be covered by the deposit scheme. As a result, more PET will become available for recycling as a pure raw material. The transition from new (virgin) plastic to recycled plastic (rPET) is only possible in countries with a well functioning deposit system, according to Coca-Cola Western Europe in a press statement.
After years of fierce resistance against deposits, Coca-Cola now even sees the government-imposed return system as the only way to achieve its own sustainability goals. The drinks giant is taking an essential step in the right direction with this. But there are still open questions.
World without waste
Coca-Cola has formulated global sustainability goals in the World Without Waste program. These goals have been sharpened for Europe:
- All of Coca-Cola’s packaging materials must be 100% recyclable by 2025.
- All packaging materials must contain at least 50% recycled material by 2023.
- In 2025, for every bottle or can sold, one must be collected
- In ten years, no new (virgin) plastic may be used for the bottles.
To realize these goals deposits are indispensable. Coca-Cola Europe has, therefore, suddenly become a great advocate of a well-organized deposit system in Europe. For the Netherlands, the transition to bottles made entirely of rPET will, according to the company, save more than 10,000 tons of new (virgin) plastic annually. CO2 saving is also considerable, with 21%.
How far is the new recycling technique?
Coca-Cola’s ambition to eventually stop using virgin plastic at all, however, has a number of bumps. Not all bottles will be returned, and some bottles will no longer be suitable for recycling. In addition, it is impossible to continue recycling PET all the time, because the quality of the material already deteriorates after a few cycles. This means that plastic will always have to be added to the stock. Of course, this is especially true when sales increase.
An interview in the Financieel Dagblad with two forepersons shows that a new recycling technique has to offer the solution. It is an intermediate form of mechanical and chemical recycling, in which plastic from another packaging can also be used for the new bottles. Coca-Cola has invested in CuRe Technology. However, this technique is still under development.
Why are refillable pet bottles not an option?
A refillable plastic bottle is not mentioned as a solution to no longer have to use virgin plastic. Instead of crushing collected PET bottles into granules that are used to blow bottles back into shape, the other option is to simply refill bottles, as is done with glass Cola bottles. In Germany, the refillable plastic bottle has been in use for many years, and a single bottle can last for up to forty cycles.
What about the squeeze bags?
The squeeze bags of Capri-Sun, a Coca-Cola brand, do not carry a deposit yet, not even next year. Consumers can’t return them anywhere. You see them a lot on the street. The squeeze bags consist of several layers (plastic and aluminium) and are therefore not easily recyclable. How do Coca-Cola’s goals work out for this product? Are Coca-Cola’s sustainability ambitions taken seriously only when it is decided that such packaging products will no longer be sold at all?
What about deposits outside Europe?
Coca-Cola is a company that contributes majorly to the plastic soup worldwide. The company sells drinks in billions of plastic bottles every year, even in countries where there is no de
Coca-Cola is a company that contributes majorly to the plastic soup worldwide. The company sells drinks in billions of plastic bottles every year, even in countries where there is no de
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