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

The Changing Markets Foundation's investigation into the ten most plastic-polluting companies reveals a global trend of corporations undermining legislative solutions to the plastic crisis. Specifically, the foundation criticizes Colgate-Palmolive for a lack of leadership, inconsistent reporting on recycled content, and an unambitious focus on light-weighting rather than absolute virgin plastic reduction. The letter demands that the company publicly support progressive legislation, such as global deposit return systems, and provide transparent, independently verified data on its full plastic footprint.

• An investigation into the ten most plastic-polluting companies and industry lobbying across 15 countries on 5 continents indicates that corporations are globally attempting to weaken legislative efforts to solve the plastic crisis.
• Colgate-Palmolive is identified as the eighth worst plastic polluter based on the 2019 Break Free From Plastic brand audit and is criticized for lacking clear pledges on mandatory collection, reuse, refill, or support for progressive legislation.
• There is a significant discrepancy in Colgate-Palmolive's reported recycled content, with 45% stated on its website compared to 7% reported to the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment.
• Colgate-Palmolive uses 287,000 metric tonnes of plastic annually, but its current strategy focuses on light-weighting a small number of products rather than providing detailed plans for an absolute reduction in virgin plastic.

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/TalkingTrash_Letter_Colgate.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/TalkingTrash_Letter_Colgate.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/TalkingTrash_Letter_Colgate.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/TalkingTrash_Letter_Colgate.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }