Coca-Cola contribute significantly to the millions of plastic bottles being discarded every year, but new plans announced by the drinks firm could see them taking steps to reduce the environmental impact of their bottles.
Every year the equivalent oil to power 1 million cars is used in the production of plastic bottles for bottled water alone; never mind other soft drinks, with only 10% of this figure currently being recycled. The remainder is left to be shipped off to landfill, where, as plastic is not biodegradable, it takes thousands of years to break down. The move by Coca-Cola therefore is a welcome one that will be rolled out later this year across their Dasani bottled water in the US.
The new bottles, named the ‘PlantBottle’, will be made from a mixture of sugar cane and molasses that will make up 30% of the bottles’ content. The remainder will be from petroleum based materials. Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO of Coca-Cola said,
“The ‘PlantBottle™’ is a significant development in sustainable packaging innovation. It builds on our legacy of environmental ingenuity and sets the course for us to realise our vision to eventually introduce bottles made with materials that are 100 percent recyclable and renewable.”
As well as Coca-Cola taking steps to reduce their bottles’ carbon footprints, competitor Pepsi has recently announced cuts in the amount of plastic used to make their bottles. But at the end of the day, bottled water is still an unnecessary, environmentally detrimental product to buy unless you do not trust your tap water. So if you really want to be greener, rather than buying a product that tries to make up for it’s obvious eco-flaws, recycle an old plastic bottle and fill it from your tap. It’s cheaper and greener!
Other items you might find of interest:
- Recycle Week 2009 Encourages People To Waste Less
- New Zealand Supermarkets Introduce Tax to Curb Carrier Bag Use
- Thames Water Announce Winner Of ‘London On Tap’ Carafe Competition
Tags: bottled water, coca-cola, corporate responsibility, plastic bottles
Surely the latest scares on BPA and toxin Phalate(?) that leach from plastic bottles when you re-use them is reason enough NOT to do as you have suggested. They clearly state ‘one use only’ on them….. its not a marketing ploy, its because of the dangers. Your best bet is to get a re-usable water bottle, and re-fill that from the tap.
What is going to be the counter strike from pepsi…this could get interesting.
@Matthew Purt,
Great point about using a re-usable bottle to fill up from the tap. PET has been studied in depth under tough environmental conditions and results have shown that they do indeed leach small quantities of chemicals into the liquid contained within them. Best to do as you have suggested and to use a purpose made re-usable bottle for quenching your thirst when you’re on the go. Perhaps this begs the question why we use PET for containing liquids at all?