tonnes of plastic used worldwide in 2019

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s reference figure for global plastics use, up from 2 million tonnes in 1950.

Impact: Economy

Region: Global

Value: 460M
Unit: tonnes
Data year: 2019
Trend: Rising
Source name: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Global Plastics Outlook
Source link: oecd.org/en/publications/global-plastics-outlook_de747aef-en.html
Confidence: Evidence: High
Verified on: 22 September 2026

Sources last verified 22 September 2026. Page updated 23 September 2026. How we check sources