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PET HATES: RETHINKING THE DEMONISATION OF PLASTICS
By now, we are all familiar with the controversy and challenges surrounding the usage of hydrocarbon-based plastics, which have fallen from wonder materials to world-polluting menaces in the span of 100 years. One particular plastic, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), has borne the brunt of this global scrutiny.
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ere, Ben Smye, head of growth at sustainable materials researching and sourcing platform, Matmatch, explains why there is still a place for PET in the modern world. It may seem unusual, but one of the best snapshots of modern society’s changing relationship with plastics can be seen in the fashion shows of New York. Several models graced the catwalk with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) bottles of Evian water in the 1980s, silently endorsing single-use plastics to onlookers. 8 Industry Europe
Some 30 years later, during 2019’s New York Fashion Week, Evian launched a sustainable, reusable glass water bottle with a bamboo lid. For a brand synonymous with single-use plastic bottles, the shift to glass — if only for a limited edition range — was a clear reflection of modern anxieties surrounding plastic pollution. It is worth noting that Evian has also set the target of using recycled PET (rPET) in its bottle production by 2025 to create a somewhat closed-loop and reduce the carbon intensity of its operations.
Plastic pollution has become an increasingly pressing global issue due to the scale of plastic manufacturing, the wide availability of single-use plastic products and shortcomings in waste management of these products. For many, PET has become the face of this pollution problem. Since the 1990s, the thermoplastic has been the material of choice for bottled beverages due to its strength, stiffness, barrier properties and lightweight nature. Mordor Intelligence estimated that more than 80 million tons of PET were produced in
