Beverage maker can change its tune with less plastic
In 1971, drawing upon the idealistic spirit of the times, Coca-Cola released an ad that promised to “teach the world to sing in perfect harmony.” But today, it’s a bit hard imagining Coke teaching the world to do that when millions of the company’s plastic bottles are found in communities and ecosystems across the planet.
Decades later, I have done my fair share of coastal litter cleanups on Florida beaches, and I’m always disappointed to pick up trash from the same brands — CocaCola, Pepsi and Nestlé. As the world becomes increasingly aware of a dire plastic pollution crisis, many have kept an eye on these corporations. It seems they are starting to feel the pressure.
In Coca-Cola’s recently released 2020 earnings report, the company set a goal to reduce new plastic usage by 3 million metric tons cumulatively by 2025. The company has chosen to use more recycled materials, but only across a few brands for specific bottle sizes.
Coca-Cola’s history of meeting its environmental promises isn’t great. In 2011, the company set a goal to use 25 percent recycled content in its bottles by 2015, but it didn’t even get halfway there, stalling at 12.4 percent.
Rather than using more recycled plastic, CocaCola should use less disposable plastic. This solution will require switching its business model to include more reusable and refillable alternatives. For better or worse, Coca-Cola’s business practices will shape our material economy and our waste.
I remain hopeful that one day I will be able to walk down the beach with my future children and grandchildren and point out the beautiful plants and animals, not a sea of plastic bearing the CocaCola logo.
– Haley Clinton,
Florida PIRG zero-waste campaigner,
West Palm Beach
SPECIAL GROUP
It should not surprise the middle and lower classes of our society to hear that nearly all residents aged 65 and older of the wealthy enclave of Ocean Reef Club had already received their COVID-19 vaccine by mid-January.
In the 1945 novel “Animal Farm,” by George Orwell, a proclamation by the pigs who control the government reads: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
The sentence is a comment on the hypocrisy of governments that proclaim the absolute equality of their citizens, but give power and privileges to a small elite.
– Gary DeWitt, Kendall