Can These Companies Solve The Plastic Waste Problem?

The amount of plastic sold in products in supermarkets is insane. Definitely, there should be regulations about how they package their products.

Plastic is so common that now I can't even imagine how people lived before 1950s without plastic.

Recyling and composting needs to be much more dramatically incentivized.

unfortunately, not enough people seem to know and care about this problem.

We should really be starting a movement for this...

stop people in the developed world from buying bottled water would be a good start

they been talking about this since the 80s when my school had those weekly reader magazines...

I hope one day humans will soon realise survival is more important than economy.

Shout-out to Footprint! Thank you guys for taking serious steps towards a better future for our kids.

The “Biodegradable” term means nothing. So don’t let that greenwash you. Look for “compostable or recyclable packaging”

I stop buying espresso drinks because coffee shops refuse to refill my cup, which I totally understand. I hope the pandemic is over soon so I can support local business!

European Union just announced a 80 cent tax per kg on non-recyclable resin (main ingredient of plastic). The price per kg depending on resin type is around 1.5-2 euro's. So it's quite a lot and incentives companies to choose for reuseables. Pretty big step in the right direction if you ask me.

Stop producing new plastic! It should be restricted. And manufacturers should be obliged to consume waste resources first at 100%.

My local recycling facility doesn’t even accept glass 🤦‍♂️

I try to recycle everything. I know some of my efforts are in vane but I do it anyway. I remember seeing a company in Africa making fence posts out of plastic bags because the bags are everywhere and wood is scarce. The machine they used ran 24/7. They can't keep up with the demand. That's a pretty good idea I think!

13:50 - “turn off the tap” - this is the crux of the issue. Convert transportation to electric and demand for petroleum dries up. Plastics are primarily a by product of fossil fuel production - almost a waste product. Obviously if your main economic input is free you will be able to make a very cheap product.

Take personal responsibility and stop buying food in plastic containers. Convenience can't come before responsibility.

Solution: Tax oil production and transition to bio-degradable plastics for containers.

As a Baby Boomer i have witnessed an era of amazing advancements in all facets of life but it is now apparent to all that it has all come at deadly cost. As a parent I'm ashamed of the mess we have left behind for other generations to fix.

Living in NYC, they take recycling very seriously.

I mean if we go back to glass and tins for grocery drinks and just return them for factory reuse would be better

I always bring my own cloth bag while shopping.

we need to subsidize these plastic alternatives, focus on the transition and have a set date in mind to outlaw plastic. It needs to be done.

It seemed like everyone forgot this was important during the pandemic! I like what Mad Money said- can't only depend on the good nature of people.

This problem has been solved already with the invention of biodegradable plastic made from Hemp and Alge. Now new laws need to be passed requiring corporations to use it by law.

Its... weird... but... we should go back to the packing we had before... and also any kind of soda/pop/soft drink etc should be sold only in returnable reusable bottles such as glass or plastic that can be 100% recycled we used to do have that and rarely saw a bottle on the floor anywhere
Ou

We need to stop using plastic

Oregon has can return for 10 cents. Yet get ready to wait in line for 2 hours to return cans. Most don’t even bother

Thank you for covering this disease issue.

Only reason why a plastic alternative was not available sooner:
Scientists aren't smart enough to understand how real world operates. Telling corporate America that "plastic is bad for the earth" is useless. Telling corporate America "I made a plastic alternative that will save you millions of dollars!" is the only effective solution.
Scientists/researchers do not know how to properly appealed to businesses, because they studied science. When you can give monetary values, you will always win. If you want investment, show the rich how you can make them money.
That's it. That's really it.

They need to start make more things out of Hemp.

Yeah!!! we need to do something about it, starting with me and you by disposing our wastes in a proper way. We are strong as ONE.💪💪💪💪💯💯💯💯

In my mind more organic or reusable packaging feels more premium, more 'healthy'. From a marketing perspective more needs to be done to make plastic itself look dirty and less premium. People are willing to pay double the price for mushrooms packaged in a plastic container, right next to the same mushrooms that you put DIY and put into a paper bag. So if people are willing to pay double, the packaging doesn't make the item cost double the price, it's in the consumers mind that something prepackaged is worth that value.

We banned the plastic bags but it didn’t last long. Reusable bags we’re doing great until COVID ☹️

Companies need to take accountability and be held accountable. They're the ones pushing single-use packaging on us, consumers aren't demanding it.

In Cuba resorts at the end of the day beaches covered in plastic cups, straws, lids, bottles, plates....then end up in the sea :((((((

Zero, please come to Norway!

one of the challenges with groceries stores without packaging is unclear expiry date . I moved from Russia to Canada and even after living here for 11+ years still shocked at seeing NO expiry date on some food products and many beauty items. The usual answer from the CS rep is "oh don't worry, we always get new arrivals" , meaning they have a high turn-around. This does not really help to understand for how long it will be good for.

Jim Cramer is the bald version of Cramer from Seinfeld

I have an idea to get rid of this problem. The issue is that it requires a significant change in the world economy.

The crazy part is it's not consumers who demand plastic it's the corporations that want it. In my city a plastic bag ban went into effect a while back. Almost overnight everyone switched to using reusable bags. Most people don't mind and changed super quickly. Same thing with reusable water bottles at my job.
If reusable models were more widely implemented people would switch no problem. After all these models worked in the 1950s and before for generations. Glass, paper, metal all of these things work. Corporations just need to stop using plastic for stuff that doesn't require it.

I'd like to add the folowing:
Plastic is not only not biodegradabile, but when it finally does, it also releases lots of dangerous chemicals.

Part of the solution could be to require all packaging be 100% recyclable. An investigative journalist in Germany tracked recycled plastic, only to discover containers made with beaded recycled plastic fell to pieces. Reusable glass containers require enormous amounts of water to sanitize them, unless you are going to use irradiation, which creates carbonized bits of food that require water to flush out. Grasshoppers flourish when it gets hot and dry. Grasshoppers are also cannibals, taking delight in eating their dead. It takes 1683 gallons of water to produce 1 lb. of beef. It makes more sense to eat grasshoppers, since 1 lb. of grasshoppers don't consume nearly so much water.

None of these are legitimate competitors. Going to take a major breakthrough in materials science to fix this issue.

Over consumption is destroying the planned, we’ve got to stop this now.

thank you for the video! it feels that alongside with covid-19 also people around the planet should unite very fast and battle this plastics problem, changing the habits, introducing innovations and so on, on an individual and collective level. it is utopic, idealistic however absolutely necessary to avoid the chaos and catastrophic ecological consequences which can happen faster if no significant action is taken.

Won’t happen in USA too big of companies run the government.

Hi team.. Awesome video 👌👌 Just want to share that even India is taking drastic measures to cut down use of plastics... Plastic plates cups and Spoonshave already been banned😃👍

If plastics can be turned back into fuel, force petrol companies to recycle 5% of their out put of plastics back into fuel they've made enough money, 5% should hurt the industry.

I wish we have resolution to recycle plastic.

Manufacturers should be held accountable in the production of single use plastics. Ban single used plastic. I dont need my vegetables wrapped in plastic.

Baggers at the grocery store make me crazy. They will put one thing in a grocery bag. One. They will put something that has a handle into a bag. When will the stores educate the baggers about the plastic problem?

EARTH: I got a bad case of the humans.

Remember the good old days when milk was delivered to your doorstep and in glass bottles

i hope one day everyone knows that the plastic bag was invented to be reused. the inventor even kept one in his pocket at all times

Looking forward to seeing the video of recycling out

We don't need plastic boxes to serve food; the ones made of rice husks decompost in a few days. Already in use in Vietnam and Thailand. Also as mugs :)

We make synthetic rubber sheets for footwear industry from wastage polyethylene thrown away single use plastic bags. More than two metric ton of plastic bags are upcycled in a day in our Dhaka based facilities. Reducing overall CO2e emissions. And avoiding micro plastics flowing into river, ocean..

"I've got one word for you, Benjamin: plastics." The Graduate 1967.

Insane but excellent solution:
One of Our biggest environmental problems is non reusable plastics used for food packaging
If every government started banning the sales of foods sold at stores (canned foods) and started encouraging people to eat out at restaurants & take outs instead of cooking at home 🏠 the positive impact on environment, economy, health & safety would improve substantially. Solving many of humanity’s problems.
The benefits:
Major Reduction in plastic use
Major reduction in cost of food
Major reduction in food waste
massive job creations
massive industry growth
Increase in tax revenues for governments
And much more.

Imagine if the top 10 corporations for jar and bottled foodstuffs (KarftHeinz, Nestle etc) signed up to a standardised glass jar and bottle system. But allowed any company to use them. These could be cleaned and returned to superarkets around the world, for a price per weight (saw this in Czech Republic in '97). Then jars and bottles collected in any country, would just need to go to the nearest bottling plant for reuse. This could be Thailand, these are filled, and sent around the world. When that jar/bottle appears in France, it returns to it's supermarket and is collected by a french bottling company, to be filled and sent onwards again. A glbal use of a standard jar and bottle system, where manufacturers just reused and labelled.

They ARE saying they’re committed - that’s the problem. Saying and doing- not the same thing.

Is good to see that many companies are looking for solutions. The problem is the people. When I go to the store or at work and see how people is not concerned about plastic is just crazy. This is one of the problems that humanity is not willing to solve, just like climate change.

Explain to my why the plastic my food comes in never breaks down yet every plastic piece in my car disintegrates 10 years to the day!

We can not wait for government and company to make change. The least we can do is be more cautious, think before you buy those package things, find alternative. The best we can do as individuals are reduce and reuse.
My country is not even do recycle properly, we never be taught in school about reuse reduce recycle. It is pathetic and frustrating.

"logistics"/"management" of habits is the main way to reduce plastic production/use pollution.

This is a no-brainer. Re-use plastic as building materials! Plastic blocks, roofing tiles and roofing panels, siding, floor tiles, decking, etc... It can also be mixed with asphalt to make roads more flexible and durable and much more! It should be seen as the new multiuse, ultra abundant raw material!

Most stores, coffee shops, etc all stopped allowing reusable containers/cups/bags or even closed their bulk food sections in response to COVID-19.

This is 🔥.. No words

The companies that make plastic should be the companies that fix the problem of plastic. and I don't even care that they go bankruptcy in the process of doing it. just like they didn't care what their product did to the planet.

Carbios is making a enzyme which breaks down plastic to its molecular structure I hope it works because this would be a game changer for the plastic recycling industry

Today I decided not to go on the sea water while on vacation in Phuket because the water was so full of plastic waste. Its a shame because this was not the case just 10 years ago. I cant imagine what it will look lile in 10 more years if nothing drastic is done to stop plastic waste.

The Ocean Clean Up is a fantastic company trying to solve the plastic pollution problem, I'd love to see them get some air time. They're doing great work :)

How we going to reuse things with this whole Covid thing , I can’t even reuse my plastic cup to get a refill at the gas station 🤣

Why don’t we post tax on plastic production to make it not the cheapest solution?

We Greengears students Team from Visakapatnam, India... made alternate products to single use Plastics with the Agro-Residues that usually burnt by farmers after crop harvesting....

Only problem capitalism solves is how to get more money, rarely is that involved in an environmental solution.

Plastics are predominantly and properly discarded in managed Solid Waste systems. Solid Waste systems (globally) are designed to protect the environment and convert carbon-based waste into clean renewable energy (RNG/LFGE). There are internationally recognized testing standards (ASTM D5526/D5511) and technologies to ensure plastics are designed to work in this primary managed system where consumers instinctively/properly discard plastics to avoid pollution.

The fundamental problem is that recycling plastic is more expensive than producing plastic. So companies don't have any incentive to recycle plastic. Perhaps there should be additional taxes imposed on companies producing plastic, and tax incentives for those recycling plastic genuinely

There is a service which actually PAYS people for dumping their plastic in the proper bins so at least they don't end up in the ocean: stipra

What about the fishing nets?? Marine fishing nets.. why don't anyone speak about those plastic fishing nets which contribute more than these plastics in the sea?

Avoid Plastic, Save Environment.

Corning created biodegradable containers made from corn husks that can hold liquids. But its still more expensive than plastics.

IF YOU KNOW IT, JUST DO IT!!!!!

I witnessed people in Cambofia and Bali throw plastic bags full of rubbish straight into the sea and river

You guys should check how South Korea does recycling. Just putting things in the bin written “recycling” doesn’t mean you are recycling. Did you guys even know you have to clean and wash plastic bags, plates, bowls, and bottles in order for the plastic to actually be recycled? Or that when you recycle paper, the staples and paper clips should be separately recycled?

Experts can count that if plastic projection continues to expand by 2030 than emissions from plastic production in 2030 will be the “equivalent” of 295 500-megawatt coal plants, but they struggle to calculate that plastics is not the cheapest material for packaging due to negative impact on the environment.

Replace road tar with plastic as the binder for gravel

Plastics are inside most cars from your fuel tank to your bumper, and more plastic is being use in cars to make it more affordable. The product comes out sterile and convenient to use on goods.

Put a 10 cent deposit on all plastic bottles. That will reduce their pollution by a bunch.

....dont know which Starbucks locales have gone strawless, if any at all. but in New York its a very slow process.... its only made more so due to the pandemic. 1-time use straws are giving the public added sense of safety.
more & more places should implement 'bring your own' when out & about... i do, but thats just me.

I end up finding out that i cant make other people do what i expect them to do so i always bahave myself, do my best not to use plastic or make full use of a plastic product. I hope when i get more powerful i can do something for my planet...

We are harvesting plastic waste from our oceans. Companies can really use that material instead of virgin plastic. Also, we need to use less plastic and have more stringent recycling laws so plastic doesn't wind up in a landfill and/or the ocean.

Please make a video about the company ALPLA in Austria. They are one of the world’s biggest plastic packaging producers. Have companies around the globe. They work with massive brands and greenwash their own products by saying that there items are possible to recycle and move the full responsibility to the consumers.

eCommerce industry uses a lot of plastic. It will be difficult to get rid of them.

Just bring a basket to the store and package your food in nothing, stop telling me like its my call lol.

necessary is mandate for producers and all users down the use chain to develop, implement, collect and bear complete (100%) costs and recycle of ALL plastics ~ just start the gathering and warehousing in immediate environmental clean up of used containers INCLUDING anything any amount found although labeled "trash" right away, yes, (which already was being done when America exported such pollutants) even before implementing new industrial recycle processes develop ~

10 more years folks. Start saying goodbye to your near and dear ones. We will not do anything because we don't want to be inconvenienced

Fishing nets left in the ocean needs to get called out too.

I never order take-outs. I eat at the restro or make my own food