plastic drink bottles bought every minute (2016)
Around 480 billion plastic bottles were sold in 2016, about a million a minute, according to market research cited by The Guardian.
Economy
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of all plastic ever made that has been recycled
Of the 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste generated between 1950 and 2015, 9% was recycled, 12% incinerated and 79% landfilled or dumped.
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of plastic waste recycled worldwide in 2019
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s annual recycling rate: 9% recycled, 19% incinerated, 50% landfilled and 22% mismanaged.
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of EU plastic packaging waste recycled in 2022
The EU recycles well under half of its plastic packaging. The rate rose only slightly, from 38% in 2012.
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a year in plastics-related health damage
The Lancet Countdown estimates health-related economic losses from plastics at more than US$1.5 trillion every year.
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single-use bags sold in England in 2025/26
Down 81% since 2016 to 2017, the first full year of the charge, and 9% on last year. The main 7 supermarkets alone sold…
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recycling rate projected for 2060 without new policy
Even by 2060, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) baseline sees only 17% of plastic waste recycled, with half still going to…
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tonnes of plastic projected to be produced in 2060
Production has gone from 2 million tonnes in 1950 to 475 million in 2022 and is set to reach 1,200 million tonnes by 2060.
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tonnes of plastic produced in 2024
Industry’s own count of global plastics production, up 16% since 2018. That is about 820 tonnes every minute, or 13.7 tonnes every second.
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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.