Why can’t Coca‑Cola make the entire PlantBottle™ package from plant-based material?

Currently, PlantBottle™ packaging in Great Britain is made using up to 22.5 per cent plant-based PET plastic, up to 25 per cent recycled PET plastic and 52.5 per cent 'regular' PET plastic.

PET plastic consists of two chemical parts: MEG (mono-ethylene glycol), which makes up 30 per cent of the PET by weight, and PTA (purified terephthalic acid), which makes up the other 70 per cent.

At the moment, we can make only the MEG part with plant-based material in a commercially viable way. While we have demonstrated the technology required to source the remaining 70% from plant material in a lab, we are still working with research partners to be able to do it in the greenest way possible on the sort of scale we’d need. We also are looking at other kinds of plant materials, such as wood chips, fruit peel and wheat stalks for future generations of PlantBottle™ packaging. Our goal by 2020 is to make all our plastic bottles from a combination of plant-based materials and recycled plastic.