Coca-Cola, McDonald’s and PepsiCo have been named as the biggest packaging polluters in the UK, according to an annual audit.
The campaign group Surfers Against Sewage examined more than 30,700 individual polluting items collected by 4,000 citizen scientists alongside coastlines, canal paths, bridleways and city streets over a 12-month period up to 5 June 2023.
The audit found 12 companies were responsible for more than two-thirds (70%) of branded pollution that accumulated over the year. Coca-Cola was found to be the UK’s biggest polluter for the fourth year running, and responsible for almost a fifth (17%) of branded plastic pollution.
This was despite the company having launched initiatives to reduce plastic pollution, such as the introduction of attached caps across its entire portfolio of brands in May 2022.
McDonald’s came second, accounting for 11% of polluting items identified, overtaking PepsiCo, which came third. Between them the three companies were responsible for 37% of all branded pollution, down two percentage points from last year’s audit.
Other top polluters include Tesco, Haribo, Nestlé, Heineken, Mars, Carlsberg and Red Bull.
Izzy Ross, a campaign manager at Surfers Against Sewage, said the results were “shocking, but sadly not surprising”.
She said: “Year on year we’re seeing the same culprits responsible for disgusting amounts of plastic pollution on our beaches, and in our cities and countryside. They must be held accountable for their pollution.”
Surfers Against Sewage is calling on companies to take responsibility for the entire life cycle of their products by reducing packaging and adopting circular business models.
The charity is urging the government to introduce an “all-in” deposit return scheme (DRS) for drinks of all sizes and materials. The government has announced plans to introduce a DRS that does not include glass in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but has since delayed implementation until 2025. A long-planned Scottish scheme has also been delayed until 2025.
Ross said: “DRS schemes have been shown to be highly successful in other countries, and there’s no reason to assume this wouldn’t be the case in the UK.”
A Coca-Cola spokesperson said: “At Coca-Cola we’re continuing to work with our partners to encourage more recycling while actively supporting several initiatives aimed at making litter a thing of the past. Here in the UK, all of our bottles are already recyclable, and all of our smaller packs are made with 100% recycled plastic, excluding cap and label.”
A McDonald’s spokesperson said: “Over 90% of our packaging comes from recycled or renewable sources, and can be recycled. We actively encourage our customers to dispose of our packaging responsibly.”
A PepsiCo UK spokesperson said: “We recognise that litter on our beaches is a huge problem and we know there is a significant role we must play to help address this challenge. We remain fully committed to reducing the plastic we use across our entire portfolio and are making progress towards our goal of eliminating virgin fossil-based plastics in all our crisp and snack bags in Europe by 2030.”
