About 8 million tons of plastic each year is leaked into our oceans. Asia is responsible for 80% of this, due to uneven collection infrastructure and lack of stringent regulations. To deal with this issue, the new ‘plastics economy’ could transform the way we deal with plastic waste. The model is the mastermind of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the World Economic Forum and Mckinsey & Company, released in a report in January 2016. This model restructures product design and manufacturing to ensure the recycling of materials. This further extends the shelf life of products through refurbishment and repair, improving circularity and functionality of plastic packaging. For instance, British retail giant Marks & Spencer uses its packaging crates 300 times on average before recycling them. Will recycling plastics make a dent on global pollution? https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/spirethoughts/asia-the-worlds-biggest-plastic-polluter/