The first synthetic plastic was created in the early 1900s and since then production has exploded from 1.5 million metric tons in 1950 to 368 million in 2019. The cumulative production is now at close to 9 billion metric tons, which has generated 6.3 billion metric tons of plastic waste, of which 9% was recycled, 12% incinerated and 79% thrown away. Given its impact on the environment and wildlife, why then do we keep using and how are consumer perceptions of it changing?
