Boston, April 29, 2026 – A noteworthy 22.11% of Coca-Cola shareholders voted Wednesday in favor of a Green Century proposal urging the company to provide more information to shareholders about its impact on the environment and sustainability risks to the company.
“Sustainability disclosure according to a recognized standard has become a baseline expectation,” said Leslie Samuelrich, president of Green Century Capital Management. “Coca-Cola investors have sent a clear message to the company that investors need this information to fully understand key environmental risks to the company.”
As the largest beverage company in the world, Coca-Cola’s operations significantly impact the environment. The company uses more than 130 billion plastic bottles a year to sell its beverages, making it the planet’s largest plastic polluter. A 2025 study found that plastic use in the United States resulted in up to $1.1 trillion per year in social costs, including human health impacts, contributions to climate change and adverse consequences of plastic pollution.
Coca-Cola previously disclosed annual sustainability reports with information on what environmental issues were most important to its stakeholders and its business, and what it was doing to manage them – including its contribution to the plastic crisis. The company previously maintained commitments to reduce its use of new plastic and use more refillable packaging. Coca-Cola also provided information about how it was promoting refillable packaging options, which is one of the most effective ways to reduce plastic pollution.
However, the company walked back these and other environmental goals in 2024. Although Coca-Cola stated at the time that it would continue to invest in refillable packaging, it has neglected to provide substantive information on, or examples of these investments.
Plastic is not the only issue that is important for Coca-Cola and its stakeholders. The company’s supply chain emissions are estimated to almost equal the emissions from China’s entire food sector, which feeds 1.3 billion people. While Coca-Cola discloses a goal to reduce these emissions, its current reporting does not explain how the company plans to achieve this goal or whether it is on track.
“Without meaningful action from Coca-Cola to reduce its plastic footprint, the impacts of plastic on our environment and its risks to human health will only increase,” said Frances Fairhead-Stanova, shareholder advocate at Green Century. “We need to know if and how Coca-Cola is going to put a lid on its plastic use.”
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