Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Resin pricing news
    • Videos
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • K Show
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • Processor of the Year
    • Best Places to Work
    • Women Breaking the Mold
    • Rising Stars
    • Diversity
    • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • K Show Livestream
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Resin Prices
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
News
July 12, 2017 02:00 AM

Coca-Cola's European operations to double recycled PET use in UK by 2020

Plastics News Europe
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Coca-Cola UK
    Coca-Cola European Partners has said it will work with key recyclers to bring the recycled PET content of its bottles up to 50 percent by 2020.

    Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP) has unveiled its new United Kingdom sustainable packaging strategy, which will see it doubling the recycled plastic (rPET) content of all its bottles to 50 percent. 

    The company announced July 12 that it will work with local and national partners to recover all of its packaging to make sure none ends up as litter and more is recycled. 

    According to CCEP only 57 percent of the plastic bottles used each year are recycled presently. The company's new strategy will set out key actions to further recover and recycle drinks packaging in the U.K. 

    As part of the initiative, CCEP said it planned to to double the amount of recycled plastic in its PET bottles over the next three years from the current average of 25 percent.  

    To achieve this, the company will continue its long-term partnership with Clean Tech U.K. Ltd., which operates Europe's largest and most advanced plastic bottle reprocessing facility in Lincolnshire, England. 

    This, said CCEP, will allow recycled bottles to return to shop shelves as part of new packs in as few as six weeks. 

    Another measure outlined by the strategy concerns the launch of a Coca-Cola branded communications campaign to convey the importance of recycling to 35 million consumers. 

    As part of the new strategy, Coca-Cola will launch a multi-million-pound communications campaign to inspire more people to recycle. 

    The program drew unimpressed responses from bloggers on the site of environmental organization Greenpeace.

    Since launching the “don't let Coke choke our oceans with plastic” campaign this spring in the U.K., over 90,000 people have emailed Coca-Cola saying enough is enough, writes blogger Fiona Nicholls, “this morning Coca-Cola made an announcement in response to all of our efforts, but in honesty… it's all fizz and no substance.”

    She dismisses the raised recycled content target as “not good enough”, pointing to a brand like Ribena, which has used 100 percent recycled content in its bottles since 2007 or water brand Belu, which is “planning to shift all their bottles to 100 percent recycled material within 12-24 months." She also noted the plans for a voucher scheme to reward customers for returning small Coke bottles to shops is gimmicky and “risks distracting from ongoing government processes to look at a comprehensive and joined-up deposit return scheme.”

    “This company has a history of making green announcements that sound good but deliver little,” she writes.

    Coca-Cola European Partners, Clean Tech U.K. Ltd.

    A recycling line at Clean Tech U.K. Ltd., which will work with Coca-Cola European Partners to provide more recycled PET.

    The campaign includes an advertisement called Love Story, which features two love struck plastic bottles who are parted and then reunited as they are disposed of properly, recovered and then recycled into new bottles.  

    The company said it will also “place a new and clear recycling message” on its packs later this year while continuing to support the voluntary on-pack recycling label scheme, as well as engaging with  the some 6 million participants attending music festivals by means of sampling campaigns. 

     Additionally, CCEP will trial an “on-the-go bottle recovery and reward scheme” to motivate consumers to recycle. 

    This will examine the behavioral impact of reward schemes and help inform any future national approaches to reducing litter and increasing collection and recycling rates. More details on these trials will be announced later this year. 

    CCEP also said that it will promote reforms in the UK recycling system, working in partnership with others — including the governments — to improve the current packaging recycling system.  

    The company said it will “champion well-designed new interventions that have the potential to increase packaging collection and recycling rates.” 

    “We have long been committed to reducing the environmental impact of our packaging. We have ensured that all our bottles and cans are 100 percent recyclable; we have reduced the weight of our packs as much as possible; and have a long-standing commitment to use locally-sourced rPET and other recycled materials in our packaging,” said Leendert den Hollander, VP and general manager at Coca-Cola European Partners GB.  

    “Our desire to double the amount of recycled material we use in our plastic bottles sends a clear signal that we want to play a positive role in supporting the circular economy here in Great Britain,” he added.  

    Coca-Cola operates in the U.K. as two businesses – Coca-Cola Great Britain and its bottling partner Coca-Cola European Partners.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    TI Fluid Systems building Michigan innovation center for e-mobility
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Redline buys Georgia-based Quality Holdings
    2
    Mattress maker Purple continues fight against takeover
    3
    Ineos workers in Ohio on strike
    4
    Redline's ‘outrageous cultural behaviors' retain top employees
    5
    Material Insights: Polypropylene production — both virgin and recycled — in the spotlight
    SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Tire Business
    • Urethanes Technology
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • K Show
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • Processor of the Year
        • Best Places to Work
        • Women Breaking the Mold
        • Rising Stars
        • Diversity
        • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
      • Newsletters
      • Resin pricing news
      • Videos
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • K Show Livestream
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
      • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Resin Prices
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified