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World Oceans Day 2021: a review of consumer information and plastic packaging

  • Published on June 8, 2021
Learn how consumer information on plastic packaging needs to improve to enable more sustainable consumption and production

World Oceans Day (June 8th) is an annual occasion dedicated to highlighting the impact of human actions on the ocean and mobilising populations worldwide for change. The ocean is our life source, supporting humanity’s sustenance and that of every other organism on earth. This year World Oceans Day will launch a decade of challenges to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 14, ‘Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources’, by 2030. 

Shifting to more sustainable production and consumption patterns (SDG 12) will be key to this effort. The growing level of global plastic consumption, for example, is one of the biggest barriers to achieving SDG 14. The Pew Charitable Trusts & SYSTEMIQ report, Breaking the Plastic Wave, calculates the flow of plastic materials into the ocean will triple by 2040 if major innovations and changes in policy and behaviour do not occur. The 11 million metric tonnes of plastic that we currently throw into our oceans every year have disastrous knock-on effects on fragile ocean ecosystems and human health. Once plastic has entered the food chain, it’s not long before it ends up on our plate.

Over the past year and a half, the Consumer Information Programme (CI-SCP) has mobilized its network to deliver a number of reports and events which contribute to the overall One Planet Network-Wide Plastics Initiative. This initiative aims to address the 4th UN Environment Assembly Resolution 6 on Marine litter and Microplastics. The reports and events listed below focus on the use-stage of the plastics value chain and explore how consumer information on plastic packaging needs to be improved to enable more sustainable consumption and production.


2020 Report: Can I Recycle This? A Global Mapping and Assessment of Standards, Labels and Claims on Plastic Packaging

The report was developed through a collaborative effort led by Consumers International and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and launched in May 2020.

The report maps existing standards, labels and claims on plastic packing regarding sustainability characteristics such as bio-based content, compostability or recyclability. Through an expert consultation, identified labels and claims are then assessed against the five fundamental principles of the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information. The report concludes by providing five recommendations for clearer and more effective communications about materials, production, recyclability and disposal of plastic packaging.

You can download the full version of the report here.


2020 Webinars - Can I Recycle This?

In order to further disseminate information about the report on the global mapping and assessment of standards, labels and claims on plastics packaging, webinars were organised with stakeholders of the One Planet network.
    •        Launch Webinar: Find out more about the report and listen to the full recording of the launch webinar.
    •        Webinar for National Focal Points: The discussion in this webinar focused on the role of governments in the communication of sustainability information to consumers, and how to improve their understanding of the current landscape regarding plastic packaging.


2021: Key messages and Case Studies

The Programme developed a series of 3 Key Message Papers for
    •        Businesses,
    •        Governments and
    •        Standard-setters and labelling organisations
to effectively implement the 5 recommendations of the "Can I Recycle This?" report in order to improve consumer communications on plastic packaging. 

5 Case Studies have also been developed as examples on how to provide credible sustainability information on plastic, see below:
    •        Australasian Recycling Label (ARL) 
    •        Pant ABC 
    •        The Logo for Products with Reduced Packaging (LPRP)
    •        On-Pack Recycling Label facilitated by Worldwide Fund for Nature South Africa (WWF South Africa) 
    •        UL Recycled Content Validation Mark


2021 Webinars - Key Messages 

On February 18 and 19, two global webinars were held to presents the key messages for consumer information on plastic packaging developed for businesses, governments and standard-setting and labelling organizations. The webinars are relevant for all types of stakeholders engaged or interested in the communication of sustainability information to consumers and keen to improve their understanding of the current landscape regarding plastic packaging.
    •        Launch Webinar: Find out more about the key messages and listen to the full recording of the launch webinar.

 

Consumers International - Snapshot 2021 

As a contribution to Earth Day 2021, Consumers International supported nine of their consumer advocacy members to provide a snapshot of the current consumer experience when purchasing products and the sustainability choices that they are faced with. Inspired by Which? research, assessments were conducted on the packaging of 11 internationally available branded products across 9 countries in India, United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, France, Malaysia, and Hong Kong.

The snapshot found that across the 11 products, 35% of packaging material was not recyclable in practice. Moreover, the snapshot uncovered unequal access to adequate recycling infrastructure within and across countries, as well as misleading, unclear and confusing labelling.

Read the snapshot here.

 

Image credits: Pexel - Lucien Wanda.
 

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