Dive Brief:
- Danone has agreed to revise the recycling claims advertised on its plastic water bottles in response to a greenwashing complaint filed by the European Consumer Organization (BEUC).
- The food and beverage giant has joined Nestlé and Coca-Cola — also listed in the November 2023 complaint that alleged misleading marketing claims — in committing to specify that its 100% recycled plastic claims only apply to the body of the bottle and do not include the cap and label, according to a Thursday press release.
- The three companies have also pledged to refrain from giving consumers the false impression of a closed recycling loop and to make sure their labeling and marketing does not mislead consumers on the environmental benefits of plastic bottles, the bloc’s consumer organization said.
Dive Insight:
BEUC, along with member organizations from 13 countries, reported Danone, Nestlé and Coca-Cola to EU authorities for allegedly making misleading commercial claims about the recyclability of their plastic water bottles in November 2023. At the time, the bloc’s consumer protection organization said the claims did “not comply with the EU rules on unfair commercial practices.”
Following the complaint, Coca-Cola announced last year that it would revise labeling practices for some of its products and put a disclaimer on its plastic bottles that clarified what portion of it is made from 100% recycled plastics. The soft drink manufacturer also said it would refrain from using green imagery such as a closed recycling loop on its bottles — a logo BEUC had flagged as misleading in its original complaint. BEUC alleged such images promoted “the false idea of environmental neutrality.”
Nestlé followed suit, committing to updating its plastic water bottle recycling claims in March. The European Commission said in a separate statement that it concluded its dialogue on modifying recycling claims with Coca-Cola and Nestlé in June 2025 and February 2026, respectively.
Danone is the last of the three water bottle manufacturers named in the original complaint to revise its recycling claims. The company is the second-largest producer of packaged water in the world and houses brands like Evian, Volvic and Aqua.
“Presenting a bottle as 100% recycled or recyclable is simply misleading and must stop, as must the green imagery that suggests that plastic drink bottles have no environmental impact.” BEUC Director General Agustín Reyna said in the Oct. 22 release. “Consumers need to be able to trust companies’ environmental claims.”
