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

The Changing Markets Foundation criticizes PepsiCo for its lack of support for mandatory plastic legislation, its failure to meet recycled content targets, and its reliance on 'climate-unfriendly' chemical recycling. The letter demands that PepsiCo publicly support deposit return systems, increase transparency regarding its plastic footprint, and commit to meaningful reductions in single-use plastics.

• An investigation into the ten most plastic polluting companies and industry lobbying across 15 countries and 5 continents indicates a global pattern of corporations attempting to weaken legislative measures designed to solve the plastic crisis.
• PepsiCo is identified as the third worst plastic polluter by the 2019 Break Free From Plastic brand audit and is criticized for failing to advocate for mandatory solutions such as deposit return systems, Extended Producer Responsibility, or 90% separate collection of plastic bottles.
• PepsiCo's total recycled content rate in 2019 was 4%, representing only a 1% increase from the previous year, which the author suggests puts the company's 2025 goal of 25% recycled content at risk.
• The author warns that PepsiCo's reliance on chemical recycling is problematic as the technology is considered immature and harmful to the climate, and that its investment in bioplastics lacks clear sustainability criteria to prevent deforestation or land competition.

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