The plastic crisis is the result of mankind inventing an extraordinary material and then misusing it, BUT, it is also so visible, so devastating and so guilt-inducing, that it is also a gift. Because we know we have to fix it. And by weaning ourselves from this toxic indestructible material, we will not only fix the plastic crisis, but we will also fix the systems that it enables, especially our single-use . Plastic is the tap on the shoulder from Nature that we cannot deny or ignore. The solutions for this crisis will go far beyond the material itself, putting us on a much better path.

If the plastics industry were a country, it would be the 5th biggest emitter of green-house gases. Plastic is responsible for GHG emissions from the minute it is extracted as fossil fuel to the fact it never has an end of life – unless burned. And we know where burning fossil fuels has got us today. It is also is the enabler of huge rises in consumption levels that drove the build of coal fired production in China and beyond, making more and more stuff to sell to the West who just couldn’t get enough (of something they don’t actually need) (see Belief 3)

When natural resources were valued and finite, we had a system. We took those resources, made things with them. Those things were valued more if they were built to last, if they could be repaired, shared or easily reused. The introduction of this new incredible plastic material broke that system and instead, taught us all to take, make, use once or twice and then throw in a trash bin to rarely be recycled. And this new system changed how we manufacture and fuelled an extraordinary rise to our current giddy levels of hyper-consumption. Without plastic, this would not be possible.

In 2021 only 9% of plastic was recycled in the UK; in the USA it was less than 6%. We can no longer hide behind the myth that we can recycle our way out of this crisis. Over half the plastic waste from many relatively rich countries is exported, often to developing countries who do not have the infrastructure to cope with it. We are sending our plastic trash to some of the poorest people in the world in the name of ‘recycling’. This is ‘waste imperialism’ and we call on governments to ban it.

Plastic is a mix of fossil fuels and chemicals. Over 13,000 chemicals are used in the manufacture of plastic, giving it the extraordinary material qualities or stretch or rigidity. Only 50% of these chemicals have been tested on human health impact. Globally, health scientists have already published thousands of peer reviewed research studies on the known impact of the endocrine disrupting chemicals that they believe leach from plastic during use and when trashed in the environment. Billions of nano and microfibres are released from simply washing our polyester clothing, straight into waterways. Micro and nano-plastics are now found in every inch of our planet, in our food, drink and now our own bodies. For the future health of our children, we need to urgently switch to materials and systems that protect us from this preventable manmade toxic crisis.

True circularity for materials is not about recycling. It’s a total rethink on how we go from our current model of take, make and waste to a new model of take, make and never throw away. True circular products do not have any waste; everything is captured and reused. We believe in a 21st Century future for retail, of competitive brands using permanent standardised packaging that is washed and reused multiple times, dramatically reducing our constant need for more natural resource. Instead of wondering which bin you should put that yoghurt pot, that coffee cup, that water bottle, that discarded t-shirt into – let us instead ask the real question – why is there a bin? We have totally normalised waste. Waste isn’t normal. Humans are the only living species on the planet who create waste. 6.5 billion tonnes of it. Every single year.

Without soil there is no life. But the top 5 inches of precious dirt, teeming with life, are in danger. Microplastics and chemicals are infecting our soil through waterways and rain. Research tells us we now find up to 23x as much plastic in our soil as in our ocean. Predictions for 2050 indicate there will be insufficient nutrients in our topsoil to grow crops in many parts of the world. We need urgent investment in regenerative, toxin free nutrients for our soil – the opposite of our current depletive, pollutive practices.

On August 2nd 2023, we hit Earth Overshoot Day. This represents the day that we have taken our annual allocation of natural resources. So for the next 5 months, we simply take resources we are not entitled to. We take the resources from our children’s future, use them to make more stuff today and call it ‘growth’ or GDP. Businesses of the future will ask themselves this question – does my business/brand/product push back Earth Overshoot Day. If the answer is yes, they are guaranteed success.

Often niche new brands lead the way but to have the essential urgent impact, we need the biggest global businesses to act faster. We believe in a new kind of pro-activism that ignites business from within vs attacking them from the outside. As entrepreneurs ourselves, we believe in the power of business to change the world. That is why we work with some of the biggest players like Unilever, Reckitt and Kraft Heinz to help them change faster, keeping all on task and championing those businesses who are doing the right thing. Change is difficult, inconvenient and sometimes costly as we pay it forward to all benefit later. But with taxes, Global Plastics Treaty and EPR, a new level of corporate responsibility and liability is coming fast.

Much as we all want to live in a libertarian society, where industry volunteers to set a path to better practices, history shows us that voluntary commitments do not work. The Paris 1.5o Agreement is failing at every level. Industry need certainty and clarity. We cannot allow the UN 2024 Global Plastics Treaty to have the same ineffectual fate. When we ban wrong materials, we create a vacuum in which rapid innovation will spring to life. We have not bothered to create any new materials for the last 50 years – why would we when we had the wunderkind of plastic! – so the opportunities now for fast-tracked innovation are boundless. But every materials now needs to measure up to a new bar of petrochemical free AND toxin free. So far we are innovating materials that look familiar – like plant leathers. Imagine our new future as we now use nutrient ingredients to make materials we have never seen before. Our materials future is happening right NOW – check out www.plasticfree.com and don’t get left behind.