Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit today against PepsiCo and Coca-Cola for their significant role in plastic pollution’s negative impacts on the environment and public health.

The lawsuit also cites the companies’ misrepresentations to the public surrounding the recyclability of plastic beverage containers, and their failure to disclose significant environmental and health harms associated with the use of plastic beverage containers.

The lawsuit alleges that Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have mispresented the environmental impact of plastic beverage containers, claiming that they are “recyclable” despite knowing that plastics cannot be readily disposed of without associated environmental impacts. Recycling using current methods is incapable of eliminating the environmental impacts, and most plastic containers end up at landfills or as litter. Additionally, the production, disposal, and recycling of plastic all create greenhouse gas emissions and environmental impacts that negatively impact County residents.

“Los Angeles County is committed to reducing the use of plastic and protecting the environment,” said Los Angeles County Board Chair Lindsey P. Horvath. “Coke and Pepsi need to stop the deception and take responsibility for the plastic pollution problems your products are causing. Los Angeles County will continue to address the serious environmental impacts caused by companies engaging in misleading and unfair business practices.”

Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, collectively, own dozens of beverage brands, including Coke, Pepsi, Dasani, Smartwater, Fanta, Aquafina, Gatorade, 7-Up, Sprite, Vitamin Water, and Mountain Dew.  Given their significant share of the beverage market, the two companies have been ranked as the world’s top plastic polluters for five consecutive years, with no meaningful accountability for their plastic pollution.

The lawsuit alleges that actions by Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have contributed to plastic pollution becoming a local and global crisis and a threat to both human and environmental health. PepsiCo and Coca-Cola engaged in a disinformation campaign to make consumers falsely believe that purchasing their products in single-use plastic bottles is an environmentally responsible choice. Because plastic does not biodegrade naturally in the environment, but rather breaks down into smaller fragments and pieces, their plastic products accumulate and pollute the County’s land and water sources, contaminating the County’s natural resources, harming the environment and wildlife, and threatening public health.

PepsiCo and Coca-Cola have misled consumers by deceptively promising that recycling can offset any harm associated with single-use plastic bottles. For example, Coca-Cola has promised to create a “circular economy” for their bottles, in which plastic bottles can be recycled and reused an endless number of times. Similarly, PepsiCo has overplayed the recyclability of its bottles by promising that it can create a “circular economy for plastics.” However, in reality, plastic bottles can only be recycled once, if at all, making promises of a “circular economy” impossible. PepsiCo and Coca-Cola have also made false promises that they would increase the use of recycled plastic by certain percentages and eliminate the use of virgin plastic.

Plastic degrades into microplastics which contaminate the air we breathe, the food we eat, and the water we drink. Microplastics are also increasingly being found in humans where they can cause negative health impacts.

The lawsuit, filed by County Counsel Dawyn R. Harrison on behalf of the People of the State of California in response to complaints from consumers across the County and the state, seeks injunctive relief to stop the companies’ unfair and deceptive business practices, restitution for consumers of the money acquired by means of the companies’ unfair and deceptive business practices, and civil penalties of up to $2,500 per violation. County Counsel’s Affirmative Litigation and Consumer Protection Division will prosecute the case in civil court.

“The goal of this lawsuit is to stop the unfair and illegal conduct, to address the marketing practices that deceive consumers, and to force these businesses to change their practices to reduce the plastic pollution problem in the County and in California,” Harrison said. “My office is committed to protecting the public from deceptive business practices and holding these companies accountable for their role in the plastic pollution crisis.”

The lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, and a copy of the complaint is available here: link