The Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF), a prominent UK-based advocacy group, has been dedicated to promoting the circular economy since its founding in 2010. A 2016 study revealed that only 14% of global plastic packaging is actually recycled, with 34% ending up in the environment, causing significant damage. This situation could lead to a situation where, by 2050, the amount of plastic waste in the ocean exceeds the number of fish. This information sparked widespread discussion and garnered significant attention. Recognizing the three major global crises—climate change, resource depletion, and environmental pollution—that current plastic usage patterns pose, the foundation partnered with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2018 to launch the "Global Commitment to a New Plastic Economy." This initiative aims to combine the capabilities of corporate brands, industrial supply chains, and public and private institutions to promote plastic packaging use and development strategies aligned with modern economic development. Starting with eliminating unnecessary plastic, the initiative utilizes innovative technologies and measures to ensure that essential plastic products are reusable, recyclable, or compostable, keeping plastic products used in human life away from the natural environment. The "Global Commitment to a New Plastic Economy" initiative received a strong response from all sectors upon its inception. Participants included professional investment institutions, government agencies, research units, and well-known corporate brands, impacting numerous leading international fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies and accounting for up to 20% of global plastic packaging usage. The initiative has already attracted over a thousand organizations, whose signatories will adhere to "signator obligations" varying according to their nature, and will achieve six shared vision goals by the 2025 milestone. The six shared visions are: Vision 1: Eliminate problematic or unnecessary plastic packaging through redesign, innovation, and entirely new logistics models. Previous research has clearly demonstrated that recycling alone cannot immediately and thoroughly solve the problem of plastic resource waste. Therefore, the primary action of the new plastic economy is to promote source reduction, targeting single-use plastic products such as cutlery, straws, and plastic bags, as well as five types of plastic materials, as the first phase of elimination. Figure 1: Statistics on the Elimination Rate of Various Plastic or Packaging Types in the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment (Source: The Global Commitment 2020 Progress Report) Vision 2: Where feasible, reuse models should be adopted to reduce the demand for single-use packaging. Shifting from single-use to reuse models can reduce resource waste or pollution from waste disposal, while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It also helps companies reduce costs and improve product packaging quality. However, according to the analysis of the official progress report in 2020, less than 3% of packaging is currently reusable, indicating that there is still a lot of room for improvement. However, one-third of the signatories have indicated that they have actively experimented with and evaluated the possibility of introducing reusable packaging in the future. Vision 3: All plastic packaging should be 100% reusable, recyclable, or compostable. Considering the compatibility of existing resource classification mechanisms and recycling systems, redesign and innovation methods should be combined with factors such as business models, material selection, processing technology, and packaging design to promote the complete shift of plastic packaging towards a reusable, recyclable, or compostable final disposal model. Currently, 139 product manufacturers, packaging producers, and retailers have signed and committed to implementing concrete measures for the recycling or composting of plastic packaging. For example, Sprite, a carbonated beverage under Coca-Cola, has abandoned its iconic green bottle, which it has used for 60 years, and has started using transparent PET bottles in some countries and regions to help with the recycling and reuse of plastics. Furthermore, it has set a global zero-waste goal for 2030, committing to assisting in the recycling of every beverage bottle and can sold. Figure 2: Sprite carbonated beverage new packaging (Source: Coca-colacompany.com) Vision 4: Ensure that the reuse, recycling, or composting of all plastic packaging is practically feasible. To ensure the achievement of this goal, the influence of all signatories will be needed. Most importantly, government policy-making and infrastructure strengthening are crucial. Recycling companies that have already signed the initiative have committed to increasing recycling capacity more than fourfold by 2025, increasing total recycling capacity from the current 800,000 tons to 3.7 million tons. Vision Five: Complete Decoupling of Plastic Use from the Consumption of Limited Resources. To eliminate human society's dependence on limited resources such as petrochemical extraction, this initiative promotes the active shift of product supply chains towards recycled or renewable materials, including the development and use of renewable energy. The seven plastic raw material plants currently signed represent 4.4% of global production, and their demand for recycled plastics is projected to increase by over 5 million tons per year by 2025. Vision Six: All Plastic Packaging Free of Hazardous Chemicals, with Emphasis on the Health, Safety, and Rights of All Industry Personnel. This project aims to encourage plastic packaging manufacturers to avoid using hazardous chemicals and additives, and to prioritize occupational safety and health management for personnel. It seeks to protect plastic industry workers and stakeholders, such as scavengers who frequently handle waste plastic containers with their bare hands. Furthermore, it hopes to encourage signatories to regularly report information through initiative management, making the industry more open and transparent, thereby promoting the health and safety of personnel. The plastics industry has been significantly impacted in recent years by policies and regulations restricting or banning plastics, as well as public pressure regarding environmental hazards. However, this new trend in plastics economic initiatives does not focus on eliminating plastic products, but rather on minimizing environmental impact by fully utilizing plastic products and controlling their use within economic activities. Ultimately, it aims to transform the plastics industry through changes in business models, such as reducing the extraction and use of virgin materials while increasing the share of recycled and biomaterials. To understand the overall impact of the environment on the plastics industry, companies are advised to analyze and consider four aspects: policy regulations, public pressure, operating costs, and industry competition, in order to respond promptly. – Policy Regulations: Be aware of the various plastic-related laws and regulations being enacted by different countries, including the gradual ban on single-use plastic products and the mandatory addition of recycled or biomaterials. Furthermore, the introduction of plastic taxes in Europe will create various trade barriers… – Public Opinion Pressure: The use of plastic products and packaging, in addition to considering past consumer concerns about product quality and brand image, requires attention to subsequent recycling and the environmental friendliness and harmlessness of material composition to cater to green procurement and green consumption groups.
– Operating Costs: In response to the vision and goals of the New Plastics Economy Commitment, brands are moving towards developing new business models or using recycled materials and biomaterials as alternatives. Recycled plastics, in particular, cannot be tested by instruments, and there are occasional cases of counterfeiting. Those using recycled materials need to verify the source, and relevant product certification mechanisms are gradually becoming a basic requirement for market entry. However, raw materials with external certification generally have higher selling prices than those without certification, requiring early investment in manpower and anticipated costs for system establishment. (Recycled material verification and inspection items are shown in Figure 3)
– Industry Competition: Besides traditional business competition, with brands and manufacturers significantly increasing their demand for recycled materials, expanding material sources and suppliers has become a necessary supply chain development strategy. This may lead to competition for materials at the source, large manufacturers squeezing out smaller manufacturers, or cross-industry competition. Competition from both within and outside the industry must be considered. Figure 3: Plastics Research Institute (PRM) Plastic Recycling Traceability Verification Inspection Items References: New Plastics Economy Global Commitment Official Website: https://www.newplasticseconomy.org/projects/global-commitment Circular Taiwan Foundation [New Plastics Economy Global Commitment] Traditional Chinese Version: https://circular-taiwan.org/learn/thenewplasticseconomy-cn/
