Unilever, L’Oréal and Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) are among the beauty businesses which have reacted to the collapse of talks that were seeking to agree a global treaty on tackling plastic pollution.
The Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, which represents hundreds of companies committed to tackling the issue and is led by the Ellen McArthur Foundation, has called the lack of agreement “disappointing”.
Beiersdorf, Kenvue, L’Occitane Groupe and Kering are among the other beauty industry members of the group, along with Clarins, Henkel and Reckitt.
At a United Nations convention in Geneva, Switzerland, on Friday (15 August), known as INC-5.2, governments from around the world failed to agree on a global treaty on tackling plastic pollution.
Efforts had started in 2022 to address the impact of plastic waste on the environment with a goal of completing the pact by 2024.
The latest meeting came after talks in South Korea last year failed to lead to an agreement, and is the sixth round of talks in three years.
Countries have not been able to agree on how to tackle the scourge of plastic pollution.
There are divisions between those wanting to curb plastic production, addressing the issue at source; and others – largely oil producing nations such as Russia and Saudi Arabia – believing the focus should be on better managing the pollution that comes from plastic.
In a statement released after the talks, The Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty said: “Disappointingly, consensus among nations has remained elusive, which further delays critical action to tackle plastic pollution and capture the economic benefits that effective harmonised regulation would bring.
“This round of negotiations has failed to deliver the certainty that business needs to further mobilise investment and scale solutions to address plastic pollution.”
The group added that it was “encouraged” by the alignment of more than 100 countries on key elements, however, and “the increased clarity achieved through three years of negotiations” on the regulations which aim to address the full lifecycle of plastics.
Rebecca Marmot, Chief Sustainability and Corporate Affairs Officer at Unilever, said: “We are disappointed at the lack of an agreement at INC5.2.
“These talks must translate to tangible action.
“There is cause for optimism; the strong alignment among governments, business and civil society groups calling for a treaty with harmonised regulations across the full lifecycle of plastics is encouraging.
“Harmonised regulations are essential to reduce business complexity and cost, whilst also increasing confidence to invest in solutions.
“We will continue our efforts to tackle plastic pollution and stand ready to support governments to deliver globally coordinated regulations.”
Further talks on the treaty are set to resume at a future date to be announced.
Graham Forbes, Greenpeace Head of Delegation to the Global Plastics Treaty negotiations and Global Plastics Campaign Lead for Greenpeace USA, said: “The inability to reach an agreement in Geneva must be a wake up call for the world: ending plastic pollution means confronting fossil fuel interests head on.
“The vast majority of governments want a strong agreement, yet a handful of bad actors were allowed to use process to drive such ambition into the ground.
“We cannot continue to do the same thing and expect a different result. The time for hesitation is over.
“The plastics crisis is accelerating, and the petrochemical industry is determined to bury us for short-term profits. Now is not the time to blink. Now is the time for courage, resolve and perseverance.
“The call from all of civil society is clear: we need a strong, legally binding treaty that cuts plastic production, protects human health, provides robust and equitable financing, and ends the plastic pollution from extraction to disposal. And world leaders must listen.
“The future of our health and planet depends on it.”
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