Coca-Cola and Nestlé facing legal action over recycling claims

ClientEarth and our partners are supporting legal action against some of the world’s top plastic polluters — Coca-Cola and Nestlé — over recycling claims that could mislead consumers.

These food and drink giants continue to sell plastic water bottles with ‘100% recycled’ and ‘100% recyclable’ claims, but the evidence is clear – plastic water bottles are not recycled again and again to become new bottles. We argue the plastic giants’ claims are either factually incorrect, vague or unsubstantiated, and that recycling can never address the scale of the plastic pollution crisis.

So we’re supporting action to hold these corporations accountable for a livable planet.

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We worked alongside the European Consumer Organisation, BEUC, to support a legal complaint to the European Commission, demanding that these companies stop using misleading claims that may deter consumers from making good environmental choices – such as using a refillable water bottle.

Quite simply, we are producing too much plastic, and people and planet are drowning in it. Recycling is not a satisfactory solution, and companies shouldn’t be implying to consumers that plastic bottles are ever a sustainable choice. Recycling alone is not a solution to the plastic pollution crisis.

Companies like Coca-Cola, Nestlé and Danone need to reduce plastic production at the source, and stop using claims that could mislead consumers.