Chief executives at companies including Nestlé, PepsiCo and Danone have urged governments to establish a “legally binding treaty” to combat the escalating issue of plastic waste.  

The call comes as the UN prepares for treaty negotiations next month in South Korea aimed at curbing plastic waste.  

The CEOs of more than 20 consumer-goods companies have signed an open letter organised by the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty. 

The signatories also include the CEOs of Mars, Unilever and packaging groups such as Amcor and Berry Global.

The coalition features more than 250 businesses, financial institutions and NGOs. It views the treaty as the “single most important opportunity” to drive progress toward a circular economy, according to UK-based charity The Ellen MacArthur Foundation, which is a co-convenor of the coalition.

In the letter, the executives emphasise that “a treaty based on voluntary measures alone risks delaying action by decades”. 

“This would create further fragmentation in the regulatory landscape for business, leading to increased cost and complexity,” the letter read. 

It outlines specific measures for an effective treaty, which include global criteria for restricting certain chemicals and phasing out problematic plastics, sector-specific approaches for circular design and common definitions for extended producer responsibility schemes. 

The CEOs recommend establishing a “strong” governing body to “strengthen” the treaty over time.  

In May last year, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) proposed systemic change to try to tackle plastic pollution, advocating for a reduction in unnecessary plastic use, redesigning systems and products, and transitioning to a circular plastics economy. 

The urgency of the issue was highlighted by a report from The Ellen MacArthur Foundation in November last year.

In 2018, under the auspices of the EMF, many of the world’s largest FMCG companies signed up to a plan that carried a headline pledge that 100% of plastic packaging would be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.

Last year's report showed gains had been made in increasing recycled content in plastic packaging but overall progress had been hindered by a few large companies.  

Despite a reduction in virgin plastic packaging by 65% of the signatories since 2018, the overall use of virgin plastic has remained relatively constant.