"Coca-Cola and PepsiCo came in at the top of a global audit of plastic waste".

"Every year, companies produce more than 400 million metric tons of plastic. Some of that plastic spills onto waterways or beaches, clogging streams or floating in huge gyres in the ocean. Some of it breaks down into tiny microplastics or nanoplastics that float in the air and enter human lungs, blood and organs.

Sometimes it’s hard to know which companies are behind all this plastic — but now, scientists have identified some of the largest contributors.

A new study published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances has pinpointed some of the major brands responsible for plastic pollution across six continents. The researchers, who used a team of over 100,000 volunteers to catalogue over 1.8 million pieces of plastic waste, found that 56 companies were responsible for more than 50 percent of branded plastic waste globally."

Shannon Osaka reports for the Washington Post April 24, 2024. [2]