- Define a list of packaging to be designated as problematic or unnecessary by 2021 and take measures to eliminate them by 2025.
- By 2025, all plastic packaging is 100% reusable, recyclable, or compostable.
- By 2025, undertake ambitious actions to effectively recycle or compost 50% of plastic packaging.
- By 2025, the average recycled content or responsibly sourced bio-based content in plastic packaging will be 30%.
Led by The Recycling Partnership, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the U.S Pact is the first pact of its kind in North America. More than 70 brands, retailers, NGOs, and government agencies across the plastics value chain will work together to bring one voice to U.S. packaging through coordinated initiatives and innovative solutions for rethinking products, packaging, and business models.
"RB is delighted to join the U.S. Plastic Pact and work with others to deliver on our shared vision of creating a circular economy. Given the complexity of the plastics challenge, we recognize the importance of innovation and collaboration across our value chain to deliver practical solutions at scale. The U.S. Plastic Pact will be a key enabler of important collaboration across multiple sectors to transform the responsible use of plastic in packaging," says Rahul Kadyan, Executive Vice President.
While the U.S. Pact is complementary to, and follows the ambitious precedents set by the existing global network of Plastic Pacts, it will be tailored to meet the unique needs and challenges of the U.S. market. The Pact will reflect national priorities and realities, while still propelling the nation closer to other developed nations in its management of plastic waste.
"Together through the U.S. Plastics Pact, we will ignite system change to accelerate progress toward a circular economy," says Sarah Dearman, Vice President of Circular Ventures for The Recycling Partnership. "The U.S. Pact will accelerate system-wide change by inspiring and supporting upstream innovation through a coordinated national strategy, creating a unified framework, and enabling members to accelerate progress toward our ambitious 2025 sustainability goals. Members' full participation will be vital to reaching our shared goals."
Achieving this vision will require new levels of accountability from all facets of the plastics supply chain. The U.S. Pact emphasizes measurable change and as such, RB is committed to transparent, annual reporting, guided by WWF's ReSource: Plastic Footprint Tracker, which will be used to document annual progress against our four goals. The first task of the founding members of the U.S. Plastics Pact will be to establish a "roadmap" in Q1 2021 to identify key milestones and national solutions to achieving the U.S. targets and realize a circular economy in which plastic never becomes waste.
RB published a plastic pledge in 2018 to reflect the company's commitment to tackling the problem of plastics and packaging. This was captured under the 4Rs – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Replace. The first priority is to reduce the use of plastic, or indeed any material, in packaging as much as possible and then work to make it recyclable and include recycled content where we can.
RB has targets to ensure 100% of plastic packaging will be reusable or recyclable and to include 25% recycled content in our plastic packaging both by 2025. We are also committed to contributing to the circular economy by supporting the development of better recycling infrastructure and encouraging consumers to recycle more. RB is also a member of the UK Plastics Pact and has seen the value that can be delivered through effective cross-sector collaboration and is delighted to be part of making this happen in the U.S. as well.
*RB is the trading name of the Reckitt Benckiser group of companies
