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Dear Reader,
| This week, US President Donald Trump has reversed a plastic straw ban and encouraged consumers to switch from paper back to plastic. The anticipated EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulations has come into force with measures including promoting reusable packaging as an alternative to single use. One of the world’s top plastic polluters Coca-Cola has warned US tariffs may see the drinks giant increase its use of plastic bottles due to rising aluminium costs. Researchers from Ningxia Medical University in China identified a link between chemicals in plastic takeaway containers and heart disease. Finally, leading organisations including City to Sea, Common Sea, A Plastic Planet and plastic-free gum brand Nuud have written tothe UK’s Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs calling for a ban on chewing gum due to its plastic ingredients. |
As always, we hope you enjoy reading.
John Higginson
Editor-in-Chief
Plastic Free Post
Trump brings back plastic drinking straws
| President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at encouraging the US government and consumers to buy plastic drinking straws, pushing back efforts by his predecessor to phase out single-use plastics and tackle waste. Trump told reporters at the White House as he signed the order “we’re going back to plastic straws,” saying that paper straws “don’t work.” Trump also rescinded a Biden administration policy to end the use of all single-use plastic products on federal lands by 2032. |
Read more here.
EU’s packaging waste regulation enters into force
| The highly anticipated Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) has come into force across the EU with an aim to develop a single market for waste, secondary and reusable materials; promote recycling; and reduce dependency on primary resources. Measures include promoting reuse or refill as alternatives to single use packaging and improving consumer information. The PPWR establishes a new set of requirements in line with Europe’s waste rules that cover the entire packaging life cycle – from product design to waste handling in a bid to tackle over 80 million tonnes of packaging waste that is produced by the bloc annually. |
Read more here.
Coca-Cola says it may use more plastic due to US tariffs
| Coca-Cola may have to sell more drinks in plastic bottles in the US if President Donald Trump’s tariffs end up making aluminium cans more expensive, the company’s chief executive, James Quincey, said in a call with investors. Environmental groups have labelled Coca-Cola as the “top global plastic polluter” for six consecutive years. It comes after Trump ordered a 25 per cent import tax on all steel and aluminium entering the US, which could end up driving up the price of canned food and drink items in the country. In December, the beverage giant scaled down its sustainability target of using 50 per cent recycled materials in its packaging by 2030. |
Read more here.
Eating from plastic takeout containers can increase heart failure risk – study
| The peer-reviewed study from Ningxia Medical University in China investigated the frequency with which over 3,000 people in China ate from plastic takeout containers, and whether they had heart disease. They then exposed rats to plastic chemicals in water that was boiled and poured in carryout containers to extract chemicals. While researchers in the paper didn’t check which specific chemicals were leaching from the plastic, they noted the link between common plastic compounds and heart disease, and a previous link between gut biome and heart disease. Plastic can contain any of about 20,000 chemicals, and many of them are often found in food and food packaging and are linked to a range of problems from cancer to reproductive harm. |
Read more here.
Campaigners urge government to act on chewing gum, a ‘hidden single-use plastic’
| A letter led by City to Sea and plastic-free gum brand Nuud, signed by organisations including A Plastic Planet, Common Seas, Kids Against Plastic, Plastic Health Council and Everyday Plastic has been sent to Steve Reed, Secretary of State for environment, Food and Rural Affairs, calling for a ban on plastic gum. According to the campaigners, approximately four billion pieces of plastic gum are consumed annually whilst plastic gum litters 87 per cent of UK pavements. Campaigners highlight that behind the “ambiguous term” ‘gum base’ in the ingredient list of common chewing gum brands are synthetic materials such as polyethylene (commonly used in plastic bags), polyvinyl acetate (found in PVA glue) and butadiene-styrene rubber (which is used in car tyres), despite the risks of plastic on human health. |
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