Cases / Plastic waste and recycling claims · United States · 1953–2024
Keep America Beautiful and plastic industry recycling messages
Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.
Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
Not on record
- The record does not name which of my species, waters, soils or forests were harmed.
Keep America Beautiful, formed by packaging makers in 1953, promoted individual responsibility for litter, and records from the 1970s and 1980s show plastics makers questioning whether recycling could work. At stake for nature is whether packaging waste is reduced at source or left to litter land and water.
What?
Keep America Beautiful, formed by packaging makers in 1953, promoted individual responsibility for litter; records cited from 1973 and 1986 show plastics makers doubted that recycling could work. What It Means to Be American (Finis Dunaway)
Where?
United States; the 2024 court ruling was in New York. Wikipedia
When?
1953 founding; 1971 advertisement; 1973 and 1986 industry records; 2024 court ruling.
Who?
Gained
- Packaging makers — Opposed deposit laws that would have required reusable containers, per Dunaway What It Means to Be American (Finis Dunaway)
Lost
- Audubon Society and Sierra Club — Left the group's advisory board, per Dunaway What It Means to Be American (Finis Dunaway)
Harmed
None on recordWhy?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
How?
Advertising campaigns, opposition to deposit laws, and recycling claims by plastics makers, as described in the sources. What It Means to Be American (Finis Dunaway)
6 of 6 questions answered from the record
What happened
The record, in order.
Keep America Beautiful was formed in December 1953 by can maker American Can and glass-bottle maker Owens-Illinois; Coca-Cola and Dixie Cup joined later, according to Wikipedia.
Historian Finis Dunaway writes that the group's executives opposed deposit laws and called supporters communists, and that the group's 1971 'Crying Indian' advertisement, aired on Earth Day, said people start pollution and can stop it.
A 1973 plastics-industry report found recycling costly and sorting infeasible, and the industry spent about USD 50 million a year on advertising, according to NPR in 2020.
A 1986 Vinyl Institute document said recycling could only postpone the disposal of plastic, as cited by Climate Integrity in 2024.
In court and with insurers
Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.
Lawsuits and rulings
- 2024-11DismissedNew York State v. PepsiCo (Buffalo River)New York court · Civil · New York State → PepsiCo
A New York judge dismissed the case, finding that others rather than PepsiCo were responsible for pollution of the river; the attorney general's office objected.
Insurers
No insurer decision on record.
What we don't know
Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.
Record
- Insufficient Reported but not verified: Philip Morris, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Anheuser-Busch and WM as funders of Keep America Beautiful (SourceWatch and The Intercept, both pro-deposit sources).
- None on record Who bore the cost of litter clean-up, and whether the messaging changed recycling rates, is not stated in the sources reviewed.
Did the harm stop?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
Who paid?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
Sources
Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations✓ Communities and civil society✓ Researchers
Press and investigations
- Keep America BeautifulWikipedia ·
- NPR report on plastic recyclingNPR · 2020-09-11
Communities and civil society
- Climate Integrity report on plastic recycling and possible legal actionClimate Integrity · 2024
Researchers
- The Crying Indian ad and the environmental movementWhat It Means to Be American (Finis Dunaway) · 2017-11-09
Connected cases
Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
- Keep America Beautiful founding and Crying Indian ad (US) United States · 1953–2023
- Keep America Beautiful (NGO) — here: Group whose litter messaging is the subject; there: Litter-prevention organisation
- American Can (Company) — here: Founding can maker; there: Founder
- Owens-Illinois (Company) — here: Founding glass-bottle maker; there: Founder
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Later member
- Keep America Beautiful, founded by can and bottle makers, opposed bottle deposit laws United States · 1953–1981
- Keep America Beautiful (NGO) — here: Group whose litter messaging is the subject; there: anti-litter group; subject of the case
- American Can (Company) — here: Founding can maker; there: founding can maker
- Owens-Illinois (Company) — here: Founding glass-bottle maker; there: founding bottle maker
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: later member
- Oregon bottle bill (1971) United States · 1953
- Keep America Beautiful (NGO) — here: Group whose litter messaging is the subject; there: Anti-litter organisation founded by packaging makers
- American Can (Company) — here: Founding can maker; there: Co-founder of KAB
- Owens-Illinois (Company) — here: Founding glass-bottle maker; there: Co-founder of KAB
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Later KAB member
- California approves SB 54 packaging rules making producers pay USD 5 billion in 10 years United States · 2026–2032
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: named in CAA program governance
- PepsiCo (Company) — here: Defendant in the 2024 Buffalo River case; there: named in CAA program governance
- Coca-Cola plastic pledges and brand audits United States · 2018
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Beverage company; pledges, plastic-credit buyer through affiliates, defendant
- PepsiCo (Company) — here: Defendant in the 2024 Buffalo River case; there: Beverage company; co-defendant in the Los Angeles County suit
- Coca-Cola World Without Waste targets reset Global · 2018–2026
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Set and reset the World Without Waste targets
- PepsiCo (Company) — here: Defendant in the 2024 Buffalo River case; there: Co-defendant in the Los Angeles County suit; second in the brand audit
- New York v PepsiCo and LA County v PepsiCo/Coca-Cola United States · 2024
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Defendant in the Los Angeles County suit
- PepsiCo (Company) — here: Defendant in the 2024 Buffalo River case; there: Defendant in both suits
- Coca-Cola and ILSI: influence on obesity policy in China and India China / India · 1978–2026
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Founder-linked company; ILSI member until January 2021
- Coca-Cola and Unilever revise plastic packaging targets International · 2024
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Revised its packaging targets
- Coca-Cola reports replenishing 115% of the water it used in 2015 Global · 2015–2016
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Company that announced the 115% figure
- Coca-Cola's partner The Ocean Cleanup reports 25 million kg collected in 2025 International · 2021
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Named global partner since 2021
- Ellen MacArthur plastics pledge off track; Coca-Cola scales back targets Global · 2018–2024
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: company that cut its packaging targets
- Great Pacific Garbage Patch and The Ocean Cleanup International waters · 2013–2025
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Global partner since 2021 (river Interceptors); largest share of branded plastic waste in the Cowger et al. 2024 audit (11%)
- Hefty EnergyBag plastic marketed as recycling was burned in cement kilns United States · 2017–2020
- Keep America Beautiful (NGO) — here: Group whose litter messaging is the subject; there: programme partner
- Nature Conservancy began $10 million partnership with Dow Chemical in 2011 United States · 2007–2021
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: company; relationship with WWF
- Ocean Conservancy withdraws 2015 plastic incineration recommendation Global · 2015–2022
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Co-funder of the 2015 report
- Paris court finds Volvic recycling claims misleading; Coca-Cola, Nestlé change labels France · 2026
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: Changed its EU label
- PepsiCo potato variety registration (India) India · 2021–2024
- PepsiCo (Company) — here: Defendant in the 2024 Buffalo River case; there: Holder of the FL-2027 potato variety registration
- Plastic recycling symbol, resin codes and “advanced recycling” claims (United States) United States · 1970–2026
- Keep America Beautiful (NGO) — here: Group whose litter messaging is the subject; there: Anti-litter organisation founded in 1953 by packaging manufacturers
- Tillamook faces suit over farm imagery as Fairlife settles for $21m United States · 2022
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: party that agreed to the Fairlife settlement
- TNC chief scientist urged conservation groups to partner with companies United States · 2011–2015
- The Coca-Cola Company (Company) — here: Joined the group later; there: WWF partner (reported)