Prevented Ocean Plastic builds infrastructure and incentive to collect ocean-bound plastic waste in at-risk coastal communities with a focus on social equity and impact investment - enabling brands to bring quality recycled plastic into their supply chain while encouraging the circular economy.
Created and launched by Bantam Materials UK Ltd. in 2019, the POP programme helps to develop infrastructure in coastal communities that lack formal waste management and are at risk of ocean plastic pollution. By working with local recyclers, and helping them build new collection and aggregation centres, we give value to otherwise discarded waste and incentivise its collection - elevating the industry and local community, while facilitating a just transition at each level of the supply chain. We funded our first collection centre in Bali, Indonesia in 2019, and have since worked with various funding partners (including Circulate Capital and USAID) to develop further infrastructure in areas that need it.
On World Oceans Day 2023, we announced plans to establish 25 new collection centres by 2025. These recycling and collection centres will operate according to the POP Standards, which have been developed in conjunction with multiple partners to elevate the industry, and are independently audited to ensure quality of material and a dignified work environment for those involved. USAID and Circulate Capital have both agreed to further funding, and we have broken ground on the second USAID-sponsored collection centre in Makassar.
To date, Prevented Ocean Plastic has prevented more than 2.5 billion plastic bottles from reaching the water, which is equivalent to over 60,000 tonnes of recycled plastic, providing an alternative to 60,000 tonnes of virgin plastic usage. Through our 25 by 2025 commitment, the programme will invest a further $5 million (USD) into the solution, creating an additional 600 direct jobs at collection centre level, with an estimated 10,000 further individuals supported indirectly.
These centres will offer a combined capacity of 54,000 tonnes annually, ensuring a supply chain that can support the demand to come. As well as building infrastructure and gaining funding to support these builds, Prevented Ocean Plastic can be found in over 500 SKUs across more than 30 brands and 15 product categories - and we have recently expanded our recycled plastic offering to include rHDPE, as well as rPET. We have been recognised by a number of prestigious organisations, including the Earthshot Prize, as an official nominee for both 2023 and 2024; the British Plastics Federation as their Top Innovation of 2023; and as an award-winner at the Green World Awards in the Houses of Parliament.
Academic research remains at the core of what we do – offering tangible solutions to real-world problems – which is why we established the POP Research Centre at our headquarters on the Richmond Green in 2020. To support further academic development in the area of ocean-bound plastic, Bantam Materials UK Ltd. is directly funding the University of Georgia's latest research - into the Hydraulic Movement of Litter - to better understand the problem and the ways in which we can help to solve it.