Corporate self-commitments to mitigate the global plastic crisis: Recycling rather than reduction and reuse

Abstract

An increasing number of companies are voluntarily committing to help complete the transition from a linear to a circular economy, thereby curbing the global environmental pollution caused by plastics. The various endeavours are codified both by signing global commitments, like the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, and by incorporating individual plastic strategies in sustainability reports. However, a critical analysis of whether these voluntary commitments can mitigate the plastic crisis and shape the transformation towards a circular economy is lacking. This paper qualitatively analyzes the self-commitments of ten international consumer goods manufacturers and reconstructs their understanding of the circular economy concept itself as well as the related key concepts: reduction, reuse, and recycling (3Rs). It can be demonstrated that a uniform definition of the 3Rs is missing and that the concepts of reduction and reuse are mostly associated with recycling. As this prevents the rigorous implementation of a circular economy from the outset, commitments must be strictly evaluated based on unambiguous definitions and this is currently not being done.