Talking Trash: the corporate playbook of false solutions to the plastic crisis

The Changing Markets Foundation warns that global plastic production is set to double by 2030 and could account for 15% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The organization argues that industry lobbying is undermining the EU's Single-Use Plastic Directive through attempts to exempt bio-based plastics, viscose, and cellophane, and by jeopardizing deposit return systems. The letter calls for legislative measures to end overpackaging, prevent greenwashing, and reject 'false solutions' like chemical recycling and incineration in favor of reuse and mechanical recycling.

• Global plastic production is projected to double by 2030, and if current rates continue, it will be responsible for 15% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
• Industry actors, including consumer brands and trade associations, are using lobbying tactics to weaken the Single-Use Plastic Directive, specifically by seeking exemptions for bio-based, biodegradable, viscose, and cellophane plastics.
• Brands, retailers, and producer responsibility organisations (PROs) in EU member states are lobbying against the implementation of deposit return systems (DRS), despite these being identified as the only viable way to achieve a 90%+ collection rate for beverage bottles.
• The Changing Markets Foundation identifies incineration, waste-to-energy, plastic-to-fuel, and chemical recycling as 'false solutions' that do not contribute substantively to a circular economy and undermine reuse and mechanical recycling.

APA

Changing Markets Foundation (2020). Talking Trash: the corporate playbook of false solutions to the plastic crisis. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/CMF-Letter-CommissionerSinkevicius.pdf

Chicago

Changing Markets Foundation. Talking Trash: the corporate playbook of false solutions to the plastic crisis. 2020. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/CMF-Letter-CommissionerSinkevicius.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Changing Markets Foundation |title=Talking Trash: the corporate playbook of false solutions to the plastic crisis |date=29 October 2020 |url=https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/CMF-Letter-CommissionerSinkevicius.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{changingmarketsfoundation2020talking, author = {{Changing Markets Foundation}}, title = {{Talking Trash: the corporate playbook of false solutions to the plastic crisis}}, publisher = {Changing Markets Foundation}, year = {2020}, month = oct, url = {https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/CMF-Letter-CommissionerSinkevicius.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }