Coca-Cola leads way in using recycled plastic for all bottles smaller than 1 litre

The Coca-Cola Company is a leading manufacturer of soda drinks in the world. Photo / 123RF

All plastic Coca-Cola bottles smaller than 1-litre, including all water bottles, will be made entirely from recycled plastic by the end of this year.

Coca-Cola, Sprite, Powerade, Fanta, and L&P all fall under the change which will roll out across the Coca-Cola Oceania and Coca-Cola Amatil brands. Meanwhile, all Kiwi Blue and Pump water bottle pack sizes will be made from recycled plastic.

The change will see over half of the plastic bottles produced by Coca-Cola Amatil New Zealand made from recycled plastic.

If achieved, New Zealand would become one of the first countries worldwide to achieve and exceed Coca-Cola's global sustainable packaging goal to increase its use of recycled plastic.

By 2030, the Coca-Cola Company hopes to reach a global goal of reducing waste and collecting and recycling as many cans and bottles as it sells.

Coca-Cola Amatil New Zealand managing director Chris Litchfield said creating bottles smaller than 1L from recycled plastic would help drastically.

"Our move to substantially increase the use of recycled plastic means we will avoid using around 2900 tonnes of new plastic and that's incredibly positive for our environment.

"Already all the bottles and cans we make can be recycled, and this takes it a step further towards creating a truly circular economy."