Welp, don’t say we didn’t warn you.
In what has been one of the greatest backslides in the relatively short history of corporate sustainability goals, during an earnings call with investors, Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey said that the brand will likely have to sell more beverages in plastic bottles, citing the newly imposed 25% tariff on steel imports that will go into effect on March 12th, courtesy of President Trump. The pivot comes after Coca-Cola “evolved” its sustainability goals, pushing them out to 2035 and relying on less recycled materials for their packaging.
“As it relates to our strategies around ensuring affordability and ensuring consumer demand, if one package suffers some increase in input costs, we continue to have other packaging offerings that will allow us to compete in the affordability space,” Quincey said on the investor call.
