Coca‑Cola Teams With WWF to Spur Private Sector Collaboration and Action in Fight Against Plastic Waste

Partnering for a Better World

Taking an Active Role in the Solution

Over the last year, companies and governments around the world have publicly vowed to cut plastic waste and play an active role in combatting the planet’s pollution crisis –from bans on plastic straws and bags to large-scale pledges to reduce, re-source, recycle and more.

Now, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is launching a collaborative platform to help organizations turn their aspirational commitments into meaningful, measurable action. ReSource: Plasticbrings together a consortium of leading partner companies –including Coca‑Cola–and NGOs to collaborate and put into action programs and solutions to keep plastic in the supply loop and out of the natural environment.

“While ambitious commitments are the jumping off point for any successful venture, we know that no single individual, organization, company or government can tackle the root causes of plastic waste on their own,” said Sheila Bonini, SVP, private sector engagement, WWF. “When it comes to the private sector, commitments move companies in the right direction, but to actually fulfill those commitments, companies need a roadmap for navigating the broken plastics system, a collaborative environment that fosters innovation and aggressive goal-setting, and the right tools to make their bold visions a reality.”

Centralized Guidance and Tools

Under the leadership of WWF, the ReSource hub provides step-by-step guidance, best practices and tools including a measurement framework to help quantify reductions in plastic waste. WWF ultimately hopes to inspire action across sectors and supply chains, and address plastic production, consumption, waste management and recycling as a single system.

“ReSource is designed to identify the concrete changes that will make the biggest impacts in reducing a company’s plastic pollution footprint,” said Nik Sekhran, Chief Conservation Officer, World Wildlife Fund. “To get closer to our goal of no plastic in nature will take nothing short of transforming the entire value chain. With ReSource, companies now have access to more advanced tools to maximize, measure and multiply their commitments to make this a reality.”

Keurig Dr Pepper, McDonald’s, Procter & Gamble, Starbucks, Tetra Pak join Coca‑Cola as principal members. Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) and Ocean Conservancy will serve as ReSource thought partners.

Supporting Company Sustainability Goals

“Solving the world’s plastic waste problem requires collective action across all sectors of society.”

Coke’s involvement in the initiative supports the company’s global “World Without Waste” vision.

“Solving the world’s plastic waste problem requires collective action across all sectors of society,” Michael Goltzman, vice president, global policy, environmental sustainability and social impact, The Coca‑Cola Company. “In 2018, we launched World Without Waste—a system-wide effort to design more recyclable packaging, increase collection and partner with communities, NGOs and even our competitors to reduce plastic packaging waste. Through platforms like the WWF’s ReSource activation hub, we can share knowledge, measurement goals and collaborative frameworks to advance a circular economy.”

A recent report by WWF titled “No Plastic in Nature: A Practical Guide for Business Engagement” examined the scope and causes of the plastic waste crisis and laid out a clear and pragmatic guide for businesses to lead a plastics revolution. The guide provided the vision and foundation for the design of ReSource, which is part of WWF’s global No Plastic in Nature campaign to protect the world’s oceans and biodiversity by tackling marine litter and unnecessary plastic consumption. ReSource will track and publicly report progress on the amount of waste prevented by participants on an annual basis.

A recent report by WWF titled “No Plastic in Nature: A Practical Guide for Business Engagement” examined the scope and causes of the plastic waste crisis and laid out a clear and pragmatic guide for businesses to lead a plastics revolution. The guide provided the vision and foundation for the design of ReSource, which is part of WWF’s global No Plastic in Nature campaign to protect the world’s oceans and biodiversity by tackling marine litter and unnecessary plastic consumption. ReSource will track and publicly report progress on the amount of waste prevented by participants on an annual basis.