June 25, 2026
CORPORATE ACTION: Danone
Greenpeace Finds Microplastics In Nestle And Danone Baby Pouches
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Research commissioned by Greenpeace International found microplastic particles in every sample of baby food tested from Nestlé’s Gerber brand and Danone’s Happy Baby Organics brand, both sold in plastic squeeze pouches. Laboratory testing found up to 54 microplastic particles per gram in Gerber pouches and up to 99 per gram in Happy Baby Organics. Researchers identified a potential link between polyethylene, which lines the pouches, and some of the microplastics detected in the food. A potential endocrine-disrupting chemical was also found in Gerber samples. Both companies stated their products are safe and meet applicable food safety standards.[Image Credit: © Greenpeace International]
CORPORATE ACTION: L’Oréal
L’Oréal Launches Global Campaign To Promote Refillable Beauty
L’Oréal’s largest-ever campaign for refillable beauty products covers four Divisions, 18 brands and 28 products. It’s timed with World Refill Day on June 16 and includes skincare, fragrance, makeup and haircare, across multiple markets and media channels. L’Oréal frames refillable packaging as both an environmental priority and a commercial opportunity, linking it to its product design and packaging innovation programs.[Image Credit: © L’Oréal]
CORPORATE ACTION: Nestlé
Nestlé Waters Faces Trial Over Alleged Illegal Plastic Dumping
New Reuters footage intensified scrutiny of Nestlé Waters amid an ongoing French criminal trial over alleged illegal dumping of hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of plastic water bottles near its Contrex and Hépar drilling sites. Investigators from the French Office for Biodiversity reported microplastic contamination levels described as up to 1.3 million times higher than levels found in the Seine River. Nestlé Waters says it’s cooperating with authorities and addressing remaining historic landfill sites, but analysts believe the developments will complicate company plans to sell the Waters division.[Image Credit: © Dornum72 from commons.wikimedia.org]
Nestlé And Robinsons Bring Sachet Recycling Machines To Philippines
Nestlé Philippines and Robinsons Retail located machines at Robinsons supermarket locations to collect used single-serve plastic sachets, one of the most problematic plastic formats in the country and widely used across the Philippines for shampoo, condiments, coffee and other products. Their size and multi-layered composition makes them difficult to process in conventional recycling facilities. Collected sachets will be reprocessed as Restore Boards for furniture. [Image Credit: © Nestlé/Facebook from Meta]
CORPORATE ACTION: Procter & Gamble
P&G, Others Outline Packaging Recycling Approaches
On the first day of the Packaging Recycling Summit in Rosemont, Illinois, speakers from Procter & Gamble and Estee Lauder described their strategies for improving packaging recyclability. P&G’s Teo Medellin said technologies like LAZRmark and FlexLoop apply cleaning processes to remove contaminants from plastics in the recycling stream. Estee Lauder’s Ken Laverdure described switching small-format sample packaging from plastic to a flat paper solution compatible with paper recycling streams. [Image Credit: © PMMI Media Group]
P&G Backs New Fund To Increase Consumer Recycling Participation
Procter & Gamble is backing The Recycling Partnership’s Recycling Participation Fund in the US, designed to address what the organization describes as a critical gap: more than half of recyclable material is not collected for recycling. With EPR laws now active in seven US states and pressure increasing to meet recycling performance targets, the fund wants to support efforts to encourage households to participate more in recycling. [Image Credit: © The Recycling Partnership]
CORPORATE ACTION: Unilever
Unilever-University Of Liverpool Partnership Produces 350 Patents
Over almost two decades, the research partnership between Unilever and the University of Liverpool generated 350 patents across areas including materials science, formulation and sustainable packaging. A report highlights innovations with environmental applications, including the development of biofilms and alternative packaging materials. The collaboration is described as one of the longest-running and most productive corporate-academic research partnerships in the UK, producing commercially applicable outputs across cleaning, personal care and food products. [Image Credit: © University of Liverpool]
Unilever Bangladesh Builds Plastic Waste Value Chain
Unilever Bangladesh published an account of its work to develop a more effective plastic waste value chain in the country, partnering with informal waste collectors, aggregators and recyclers. Bangladesh faces significant plastic pollution challenges, including limited formal recycling infrastructure and a large volume of multi-layer flexible packaging. Unilever’s initiatives include training, financial support and market linkages for informal sector workers. [Image Credit: © Unilever]
CORPORATE ACTION: Other
YSL Beauty Brings Refillable Luxury Products To Market
YSL Beauty is promoting refillable packaging as part of a broader push by parent company L’Oréal toward sustainable beauty formats. It positions YSL as part of L’Oréal’s wider strategy, which includes its #jointherefillmovement campaign and investment in refill infrastructure across markets. Adoption at the luxury end of the market is seen as potentially influential in normalizing refill systems.[Image Credit: © YSL Beauty]
Yves Rocher Expands Refillable Shampoo Range
French beauty brand Yves Rocher is extending its refillable shampoo line with a new 600ml flexible pouch format, designed for use alongside reusable bottles already available in the range. Yves Rocher positioned refillable products as a central part of its sustainability offer and the expansion builds on existing refill formats available in its retail stores and online shop. [Image Credit: © Yves Rocher/Instagram from Meta]
CAMPAIGNS, COMMITMENTS & NGOs
Danish Campaign Highlights Human Microplastic Exposure
Danish nonprofit Plastic Change’s new advertising campaign uses nude imagery to illustrate the extent to which microplastics have been found in human bodies. Recognized as an ad of the day by industry publication The Drum, it aims to make microplastic exposure a more personal issue to raise awareness.[Image Credit: © Plastic Change]
CONSUMER & PUBLIC OPINION
German Survey Shows Mixed Awareness Of Packaging Sustainability
A survey in Germany found broadly positive attitudes toward sustainable packaging but revealed gaps in consumer knowledge about specific materials and recycling systems. Respondents generally supported reducing packaging waste and increasing recycled content, for example, but many were unable to correctly identify which packaging types were recyclable in their local systems. The survey also found a disconnect between what consumers say they prioritize, such as recyclability and reduced plastic use, and actual purchasing behavior when cost or convenience is a factor. [Image Credit: © Deutsche Verpackungsinstitut]
US Gen Z Prioritizes Recyclability, Less Plastic In Packaging
A survey of US Gen Z by Plastics Today and Packaging Digest finds that recyclability is the top sustainable packaging priority for this demographic, followed by minimal plastic content, compostable or biodegradable materials and reusable packaging. Gen Z respondents were more likely than older consumers to say they check packaging for sustainability claims before purchasing and a majority said they would pay a modest premium for products in more sustainable packaging. A significant proportion reported feeling skeptical about recyclability claims on packaging, citing confusion over labeling. [Image Credit: © Guilherme Pedrosa on Pexels]
POLICY, REGULATION & LEGAL
States, Trade Group Challenge California's Plastic Packaging Law
Led by Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers, a coalition of 17 states together with the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to block California's Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act. It argues that regulations requiring companies to reduce single-use plastics and make packaging recyclable or compostable are “onerous mandates” that raise costs for consumers. Hilgers said, “if California goes unchecked, consumers will be forced to pay more for basic necessities.” [Image Credit: © Matthias Zomer on Pexels]
Lawsuit Argues California SB 54 Regulations Fall Short Of Law
A challenge to California’s SB 54 plastic packaging regulations argues that they fail to go far enough. Oceana, Californians Against Waste and the Natural Resources Defense Council filed a lawsuit, arguing that they create loopholes in violation of the original statute. Legal commentators note that compliance obligations remain in place regardless of pending litigation. [Image Credit: © Benesch Friedlander Coplan & Aronoff LLP]
RESEARCH
Amcor Study Finds Refill Packaging Established In Personal Care
New consumer research from Amcor across six European countries, finds refill packaging well established in personal care categories including shower products, haircare and handwash. Refill pouches are the leading format: 66% of respondents report a purchase in the past 12 months. Affordability is the strongest driver of future adoption. 86% expect refill products to cost less than single-use packaging. Distribution and visibility in stores remain key barriers, but European regulations including the PPWR are expected to accelerate the shift toward refill formats.[Image Credit: © Amcor plc]
Australians Back National Recycling Rules In New Survey
Cleanaway’s 2026 Recycling Behaviours Report, based on a survey of 1,000 Australians, finds strong public support for national packaging reform. 94% backed a circular economy for packaging, with 92% supporting national rules for recycled content in plastic packaging and 89% calling for manufacturers and brands to face stronger obligations to reduce waste. Nearly two-thirds feel misled by packaging that appeared recyclable but was not accepted in existing systems.[Image Credit: © Cleanaway]
OTHER NEWS
California Tests Recovery of Small Plastics Before EPR Deadline
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Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy will be field testing in California to recover small-format plastics like bottle caps and condiment sachets that routinely slip through standard sorting equipment at material recovery facilities. L’Oréal is the founding partner, supported by Kraft Heinz and CVS Health, to get ahead of SB 54, the state’s EPR law, which is due to take full effect from January. Learnings are intended to inform a statewide roadmap for producers, recyclers and municipalities to build scalable systems for capturing small-format packaging.[Image Credit: © Closed Loop Partners]
FIFA Reverses Position On Reusable Bottles At World Cup
FIFA’s ban of 2026 World Cup fans taking reusable bottles into stadiums prompted criticism and concern over sustainability and fan welfare during matches played in temperatures above 26°C. Earlier guidance allowed fans to take one factory-sealed water bottle and transparent reusable plastic bottles if label-free and only filled once inside the stadium. FIFA’s reversal stops fans bringing ‘bottles, cups, cans or any other form of closed or capped receptacle that may be thrown or cause injury’ into stadiums. [Image Credit: © Allen Boguslavsky on Pexels]
New Global Reuse Symbol Aims For Universal Recognition
PR3: The Global Alliance to Advance Reuse unveiled a new global symbol for reusable packaging. Created by Colombian design studio Epigrama Studios after a global competition, the bright purple spiral design is intended to be as recognizable as the recycling chasing arrows symbol. Its use is tied to specific criteria in the PR3 Marking & Labeling Standard, ensuring it can only appear on packaging and infrastructure operating in verified reuse systems covering collection, sorting, washing and return. PR3 cofounder Amy Larkin states that just 9% of plastic waste is currently recycled and reuse systems can reduce single-use packaging production by up to 90%.[Image Credit: © RESOLVE]
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