Plastic: A Global Problem

The excessive production and consumption of plastic in recent decades has led to a substantial increase in plastic waste all over the world.

Researchers estimate that?more than 8.3 billion?tonnes?of plastic?have?been produced since the early 1950s, and around 60% of that plastic has ended up in either a landfill or the natural environment (UN Environment Annual Report, 2018).

Growth in production and consumption is further coupled with an inefficient global waste management system, resulting in less than 20% of plastic waste being recycled (CIEL, 2019).?Plastic pollution has therefore become one of the most pressing environmental issues our generation is facing.

Plastic pollution has grave consequences on the environment and human health. The consequences are further compounded by the fact that, unlike organic waste, plastic can take hundreds to thousands of years to decompose in nature?(New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services n.d.).

Plastic waste is causing floods by clogging drains, causing respiratory issues when burned, disrupting food chains, degrading natural habitats, shortening animal lifespans when consumed or entangled, and contaminating water bodies when dumped into canals and oceans?(Baconguis,?2018).

Microplastics and even smaller?nano plastics?have also been found in many of the food and beverage products we consume (Hernandez et al., 2019 Environmental Science and?Technology).

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation (2016) anticipates that, by weight, there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish by 2050 if no action is taken.?

In addition, plastic production is also greenhouse-gas intensive. In 2015, 184.3 to 213 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions were created by manufacturing ethylene, which is the building block for polyethylene plastics.

This is approximately equivalent to emissions from 45 million passenger vehicles per year (Plastic and Climate: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet, 2019).?

To curb plastic pollution, we must produce and consume less, as well as managing the waste that already exists more effectively. Taking these actions requires engagement from numerous stakeholders in society; the reduction of plastic is a major global challenge that requires global effort.

Plastic in the Supply Chain

Within the supply chain, plastic packaging is used to protect goods both during storage and delivery. Warehouses often receive goods packed into plastic that may simply be discarded after use, while distributors often use bubble wrap, inflated plastic packaging or packing peanuts to pack delivery cartons. The?CIEL?(2019) report?highlights?packaging as a key?contributor to the amount of single-use, disposable plastic being generated.

Plastic packaging, which represents 40% of plastic demand is very difficult to recycle and so is typically disposed of in landfill or incinerated.??Global emissions from incineration of this?particular type of plastic?waste totaled 16 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2015.

At adm Group, we are responsible for procuring and developing products on clients’ behalf (e.g., ice buckets, illuminated signage, cosmetic pouches, toys, garments, etc.). Packaging is therefore a necessary procedure in our operations. In light of the global plastic pollution challenge, sustainable packaging is now a high-profile priority that is considered in our company’s sustainability strategy.

adm Group’s Contributions Towards Plastic Waste Reduction

At adm Group, we have made several ambitious commitments in our plastic strategy such as aiming to remove or replace single-use plastic polybags with sustainable alternatives across 100% of our catalogue orders globally by 2023.

We also aim to increase the use of recycled or upcycled content in our plastic products offered to clients, as well as use 100% reusable, recyclable or certified compostable plastic. In turn, this would reduce the emissions associated with landfilling, manufacturing, transportation, end-of-life treatment, and the extraction of raw materials like petrochemical for virgin plastics. This target is part of our wider strategy to move towards sustainable resource consumption across areas such as paper,?plastic and more.?

To realise our targets and track our progress, we partnered with The University of Hong Kong to measure our plastic packaging use from the products produced for four clients in the Drinks sector. We focus on designing plastic out of our products from the onset, but also work on sourcing plastic with high recycled content.

We have been observing positive annual reduction rates, with 50% of our?catalogue?items in the GSC region (Hong Kong SAR & China) free from plastic packaging in 2020.

For one of our customers, we used 100% recycled polybags with 7% of our revenue with them attributed to post-consumer recycled content materials. Over the course of 2020, we also removed 3.3 million polybags from one US client’s brand ranges through packaging reduction strategies and by using more sustainable materials.?

Moving forward, we plan to deploy this initiative to suppliers outside China.?The reduction of plastic packaging use from the products we provide would likely reduce the environmental impact from plastic waste streams and the emissions attributable to our supply chain. In doing so, we at adm aim to push boundaries and set higher industry standards for sustainable packaging in the supply chain, to increasingly fuel the global effort to combat the plastic problem for a cleaner and healthier planet.

Recognising that sustainability can only be realized with strong partnerships and collaboration, as well as demonstrate our commitment to Goal 17 of the UN SDGs, we at adm strongly prioritize industry experience sharing.

In May 2021, we showcased our plastic alternative solutions in a Plastic Phase-out Webinar hosted by the University of Hong Kong alongside other industry peers. By leveraging the power of experience sharing, we were able to understand each other’s plastic initiatives, challenges, and successes, share constructive feedback and advice, and highlight our mutually reinforcing commitment to sustainability.