WPP commits to phasing out single use plastics by 2020

Josh McDonnell
By Josh McDonnell | 19 June 2019
 

WPP has revealed plans to phase out single-use plastics in all of its 3000 plus agency offices worldwide by 2020, as part of a series of initiatives aimed at tackling pollution.

The company will phase out single-use plastics in its premises by the end of the year. It will no longer buy or provide single-use plastics such as bottles, straws, cutlery and cups in any of its 3,000-plus agency offices and campuses worldwide.

WPP has signed the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, led jointly by UN Environment and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, endorsing the vision of a circular economy for plastic in which it is designed never to become waste or pollution.

“Our industry has tremendous collective power to bring about change for the better, but our efforts have to begin at home. Taking the plastic out of Wire & Plastic Products by phasing out single-use plastics in our offices is just the first step," WPP CEO Mark Read says.

"People expect companies to act responsibly and help them live more sustainably, and our clients look to us to help them deliver brands with purpose. We look forward to working with partners across the industry and using our creativity, insight and scale to make a difference.”

The company has also committed to work with partners and clients to "inspire consumers to think differently about plastic packaging and change their behaviour", as well as create more sustainable approaches to product and packaging design and develop new systems for delivering and recycling products.

Facebook is among the first partners to collaborate; the two companies are exploring ways to work together to harness their "collective global reach" to drive action among consumers.

Other signatories of the agreement include Colgate-Palmolive, Danone, Johnson & Johnson, Mars, Nestlé, PepsiCo, SC Johnson, The Coca-Cola Company and Unilever.

“Plastic is a miracle material born from man’s creativity. But our misuse of plastic has now created an environmental disaster that our children will inherit if we don’t turn off the plastic tap fast," A Plastic Planet co-founder Sian Sutherland says.

"To have the full creative force of WPP focused on driving change at many levels will accelerate the pace globally. Bad design got us into this mess and good design will get us out of it.”

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