Coke, Nestle & Pepsi Top Plastic Litter List

43% of plastic waste turned out to be from big brands

Tens of thousands of pieces of plastic littering the planet come from just a handful of multinational corporations, an environmental pressure group said on Wednesday, according to an AFP report from Manila.

Coca-Cola, Nestle and PepsiCo were named by Break Free from Plastics, a global coalition of individuals and environmental organisations, who warned the companies largely avoid cleanup responsibility.

The coalition's volunteers collected nearly half a million pieces of plastic waste during a coordinated World Clean Up Day in 51 countries a month ago, of which 43 percent were marked with a clear consumer brand.

For the second year in a row, it said, CocaCola came out on top, with 11,732 pieces of plastic collected from 37 countries across four continents -- more than the next three top global polluters combined.