The planet is overrun by plastic.
Over 300 million tons of plastic are produced every year, half of which is used to create single-use items such as shopping bags, cups and straws.
At least 14 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean every year, and plastic is found on the shorelines of every continent, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Microplastics have been found in tap water, beer, salt and recently in the human bloodstream.
Plastic, a synthetic organic polymer, is made from petroleum, and just 20 companies are the source of more than half of the single-use plastics in the world.
The Plastic Waste Makers Index is a study by Australia’s philanthropic Minderoo Foundation that identifies the source of the world’s single-use plastic waste. It names the 20 petrochemical companies who generate more than half the world’s single-use plastic waste, and the global financial institutions backing them.
The report aims to increase transparency along the entire plastics supply chain, beyond the brands like Coca-Cola named as the No. 1 contributor to plastic pollution globally. Polymers are the building blocks of plastic, and polymer producers are the gatekeepers of plastic production.
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According to the report, the index also serves as a tool to assist the companies named to assess their single-use plastic footprint and to measure progress against their own sustainability goals, in moving from virgin fossil fuel sources to more circular models. A circular economy is one that emphasizes sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling, rather than a linear model in which resources are collected, used and thrown away.