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Are Plastic Neutrality and Carbon Offsets Effective?

In an exclusive interview, Tru Earth CEO Brad Liski explains why these programs are not the right strategies for solving the plastic waste crisis.

Brad Liski, CEO, Tru Earth
Brad Liski, CEO, Tru Earth

Brad Liski, chief executive officer and co-founder of eco-friendly household products company Tru Earth, the maker of Eco-Strips ultra-concentrated laundry detergent strips, explains why plastic neutrality programs and carbon offsets are not the right strategies for solving the plastic waste crisis.

Packaging World:

You have said that you see “plastic neutrality as a mask for companies to continue producing plastic en masse, but then being able to ‘offset’ through financial means.” Can you explain what plastic neutrality consists of and why you feel it just gives license to large CPGs to continue what they’re doing?

Brad Liski:

Certainly. Plastic neutrality consists of balancing your plastic footprint by removing the same amount of plastic waste from the environment that you create. In other words, for every bit of plastic you create, you recover and dispose of it “properly.” While at first glance this sounds like an amazing idea, ultimately this ends up being a mask for companies to continue producing mass amounts of plastic. It allows large CPGs to appear as if they are part of the solution, when really they continue to be the problem. In order to join the solution, companies must eradicate plastic from the supply chain. It’s time to stop talking about what to do with waste and start caring about not producing it. We have proven that plastic is no longer needed for laundry detergent, toilet bowl cleaners, and multi-surface cleaners. Now is the time to stop using it.


Read article   Read this interview with Jon Silverman, senior vice president, Physical Products, for Grove Collaborative.


Do you see any benefits to plastic neutrality/carbon offsets?

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