Reusable Packaging at Paris Olympics Dramatically Reduced Single-Use Plastic
News follows Coca-Cola’s decision to abandon reuse goal; Oceana calls for the company and future Olympic Games to commit to more reuse — done right.
Press Release Date: December 12, 2024
Location: Washington, DC
Contact:
Gillian Spolarich, Anna Baxter | email: gspolarich@oceana.org, abaxter@oceana.org
202-467-1909, Anna Baxter
Today, the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games released its “Paris 2024 Sustainability & Legacy Post-Games Report Summary,” which revealed the Paris 2024 Games achieved a 52% reduction in single-use plastic on the supply of drinks (by weight) compared to the London 2012 Games and a 70% reduction in the number of single-use plastic bottles used. The report cited a “new drinks distribution model” including the use of drink fountains with reusable cups and returnable glass bottles, as well as promoting the use of personal water bottles, and reducing single-use plastic in packaging, as the key actions that were taken to achieve these outcomes.
The release of this report follows the decision of long-term Olympic beverage sponsor Coca-Cola to drop its voluntary goal to increase reusable packaging earlier this month.
In response, Oceana released the following statement from Dr. Dana Miller, Oceana’s Director of Strategic Initiatives:
“The Paris 2024 Olympics have demonstrated that reusable packaging used at-scale can dramatically reduce single-use plastic. The oceans are being devastated by single-use plastic pollution and reusable packaging is the best path forward to tackle this crisis. Paris 2024 was the largest sporting event ever to serve beverages in reusable packaging. All eyes are on the Olympic Movement and future games including Milano Cortina 2026 and Los Angeles 2028 to follow suit and commit to reuse. It’s time for event organizers and sponsors like Coca-Cola to ditch single-use plastic cups, bottles, and other unnecessary, disposable plastic packaging for good.
This major plastic reduction happened even with issues in the Paris 2024 reuse system. Some beverages were poured into reusable cups from single-use plastic bottles, and reusable cups were branded with the Olympic logo making them attractive to fans to take home as souvenirs and unable to be used at other events. Unfortunately, the report did not disclose detailed metrics allowing for a critical evaluation of reuse systems, which would have helped better inform future efforts. That said, imagine how effective the system could be if done right. Reuse systems at future games should be designed to minimize waste, and they should not feature single-use plastic.
This is a terrible time for Coca-Cola to abandon its goal to increase reusable packaging. Single-use plastic is devastating our oceans, creating microplastic pollution, and threatening our health. We have a solution that works. Paris 2024 has proven that reuse is the gold medal standard. Single-use plastic, even with recycled content, shouldn’t be allowed on the podium. Oceana is calling on leading sports sponsors including Coca-Cola and Pepsi, and event organizing committees to build on this by making reuse the norm at future Olympic Games and other large sporting events, like the FIFA World Cup in 2026.”
Before the Paris Olympics in July 2024, over 100 sports organizations and elite athletes sent a letter to leading event sponsors Coca-Cola and Pepsi, calling on them to make future Olympics run on reuse rather than single-use. Oceana estimates that up to 153 billion single-use plastic bottles and cups can be prevented from polluting our world’s waterways and seas through increasing reusable beverage packaging — in place of single-use plastic — by just 10-percentage points globally by 2030.
Oceana is the largest international advocacy organization dedicated solely to ocean conservation. Oceana is rebuilding abundant and biodiverse oceans by winning science-based policies in countries that control one-quarter of the world’s wild fish catch. With more than 300 victories that stop overfishing, habitat destruction, oil and plastic pollution, and the killing of threatened species like turtles, whales, and sharks, Oceana’s campaigns are delivering results. A restored ocean means that 1 billion people can enjoy a healthy seafood meal every day, forever. Together, we can save the oceans and help feed the world. Visit Oceana.org to learn more.
