• Plastic Waste

    Supporting the transition to a circular economy for plastic packaging waste

Building a circular economy for packaging

Moving from a linear to a circular economy requires a different approach to plastic usage, from production, consumption and reuse, to recycling and disposal. This new approach will require collaboration, voluntary knowledge and experience sharing, and creating partnerships with different sectors and organisations that, under different circumstances, might not normally have come together to act.

There is an urgent need to tackle the environmental problems associated with plastic waste, especially as 95% of plastic packaging is created for single use and packaging produced by our industry is on the rise globally. The United Nations Environmental Programme estimates that of the 8.3 billion tonnes of plastics produced since the 1950s, about 60 percent has ended up in a landfill or the natural environment. The 8-12 million tonnes of plastic litter that ends up in the ocean every year is one of the most visible and alarming signs of this problem.

But in 2026, sustainability for sustainability’s sake is no longer enough. Businesses should also focus on the commercial value of circularity. Smarter packaging design can reduce material costs, improve supply chain efficiency, respond to evolving regulation, strengthen consumer trust and unlock innovation. Building a circular economy is therefore not only an environmental imperative, but a strategic business opportunity for companies looking to remain future-ready.

Help support the transition towards towards a circular economy

With a common vision of a world where no plastic waste ends up in nature – land or sea – the CGF’s Coalition of Action on Plastic Waste and its member companies are committed to engage in this important effort.

Help support the transition towards towards a circular economy

Our governance

  • GALEN WESTON

    Chairman - Coalition Co-Sponsor

  • MARIO ABREU

    Chief Sustainability Officer - Coalition Co-Chair

  • ASHLEY C. HALL

    Director of Sustainable Packaging - Coalition Co-Chair

Our key achievements

Our achievements

  • March 2026

    The Coalition Releases New Guiding Principles on EPR for Liquid Packaging Cartons in LMICs

  • January 2026

    Coalition Releases Paper on Exploring AI for Packaging Circularity

  • September 2025

    Coalition Releases Paper on Critical Considerations for Well-Designed Parallel EPR-DRS Systems for Recycling

  • January 2025

    The Coalition Announces City-Scale Reusable Packaging System in Ottawa with Reposit

  • July 2024

    CGF China and SynTao Publish Case Study Booklet

  • March 2024

    Coalition Publishes New Paper on Extended Producer Responsibility in Indonesia

  • January 2023

    Coalition Launches New Workstreams on Reuse/Refill and Flexibles

  • July 2023

    CGF China Golden Design Rules Case Study Booklets Launched in Chinese and English

  • July 2023

    L'Oréal's Alexis Perakis-Valat Appointed Co-Sponsor of Plastic Waste Coalition of Action

  • October 2022

    Coalition Companies Signal Shared Demand for 800,000 Tons of Chemically Recycled Materials

  • April 2022

    Coalition Companies Announce Position on Chemical Recycling Technologies and Publish Life Cycle Assessment

  • February 2022

    The Coalition Publishes New Guidelines for Ecomodulation of Extended Producer Responsibility Fees

  • July 2021

    The Coalition Launches Full Set of “Golden Design Rules” to Tackle Plastic Waste

  • December 2020

    The Coalition Releases Position Paper on Optimal Extended Producer Responsibility

  • December 2020

    CGF Plastic Waste Coalition Announces First Two Golden Design Rules for Plastic Packaging

  • October 2018

    CGF Endorses the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's New Plastics Economy

Our key pillars

Acceleration area

Acceleration area

Adopting the Golden Design Rules for plastics

Our key resources

Meet the team

  • CEDRIC DEVER

    Director, Plastic Waste

  • DELIA NEDELCU

    Officer, Sustainability

  • LOUISE CHESTER

    Manager, Communications

Our latest news

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  2. QR Code Implementation Guideline

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