U.S. News

Los Angeles County announced last week that it’s suing PepsiCo and Coca-Cola over plastic pollution, arguing that the soda giants’ plastic bottles have harmed public health and the environment and that the companies knowingly misled the public about their products’ recyclability.

“Coke and Pepsi need to stop the deception and take responsibility for the plastic pollution problems your products are causing,” said Los Angeles County Board Chair Lindsey P. Horvath in a statement. The lawsuit seeks an injunction against Coca-Cola and PepsiCo’s “deceptive business practices” — their sustainability claims — plus civil penalties and restitution for consumers who were misled by those claims.