Global “Alliance to End Plastic Waste” launched

30-Jan-2019 - Last updated on 29-Jan-2019 at 08:45 GMT

Major players from the plastics and consumer goods value chain have launched the new “Alliance to End Plastic Waste” (AEPW), in a bid to step up efforts to reduce wastes from packaging and through the supply chain.

The Alliance (full details here) has committed over 1.0 billion US dollars with the goal of investing 1.5 billion US dollars over the next five years to help end plastic waste in the environment.

Members are chemical and plastic manufacturers, consumer goods companies, retailers, converters, and waste management companies – they represent the range of companies that make, use, sell, process, collect, and recycle plastics.

The Alliance has been working with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development as a founding strategic partner. It aims to develop and bring to scale solutions that will minimize and manage plastic waste, and will also promote solutions for used plastics by helping to enable a circular economy.

Henkel: a founding member

Henkel, whose beauty division owns household brands including Schwarzkopf, is one of over 25 companies who have come on board as a founding member of the AEPW.

“As a global consumer goods and industrial company, we at Henkel want to contribute to ending plastic waste,” says Hans Van Bylen, Henkel CEO and President of the German Chemical Association VCI.

“Developing sustainable solutions for this challenge will only be possible if we engage and collaborate across the entire value chain – from suppliers, trade partners, consumers and organizations through to governments.”

Henkel says that by 2025, 100% of its packaging will be recyclable, reusable or compostable. At the same time, 35% of the packaging of its consumer products in Europe will include recycled plastics, it suggests.

Henkel’s participation confirms the fact that sustainability has become a huge focus for beauty and personal care industry.

How will the Alliance work?

The global Alliance has the mission to advance solutions to eliminate plastic waste in the environment, especially in the ocean. Therefore, it will develop and execute Alliance-sponsored projects along with individual, company-directed investments that drive progress in four key areas:

Infrastructure development to collect and manage waste and increase recycling
Innovation to advance and scale new technologies that make recycling and recovering plastics easier and create value from all post-use plastics
Education and engagement of governments, businesses, and communities to mobilize action
Clean up of concentrated areas of plastic waste already in the environment, particularly the major conduits of waste, like rivers, that carry land-based plastic waste to the sea