Kia and The Ocean Cleanup Partner to Remove Ocean Plastic

A car company and an ocean cleanup nonprofit are proving that fighting plastic pollution can happen on land and sea at the same time.

Kia has renewed its partnership with The Ocean Cleanup, providing four new electric vehicles to support daily operations at the nonprofit's Rotterdam headquarters. The collaboration, which started in 2022, goes far beyond just donating cars.

The two organizations are working together to turn plastic recovered from the ocean into actual car parts. Kia recently created a limited-edition trunk liner for its EV3 model made with 40% recycled ocean plastic pulled directly from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

"Our partnership with The Ocean Cleanup reflects Kia's belief that meaningful progress is achieved through consistent action and collaboration," said Dante Zilli, marketing director at Kia Europe. The company provides financial support, technical expertise, and logistical help to keep cleanup operations running smoothly.

The Ocean Cleanup has set an ambitious goal: remove 90% of floating ocean plastic worldwide by 2040. Through its 30 Cities Program, the nonprofit is tackling the problem at its source by intercepting plastic in rivers before it ever reaches the sea.

Riccardo Farina, head of funding for corporate partnerships at The Ocean Cleanup, emphasized that this goes beyond typical corporate sponsorship. "This collaboration goes beyond financial support; it is about true teamwork," he said.

The partnership recently expanded to Los Angeles, where both organizations are working to catch plastic waste in local rivers before it enters the Pacific Ocean. The Ocean Cleanup aims to intercept one-third of all river-borne plastic pollution by 2030 through these interception systems.

The Ripple Effect

This partnership shows how creative collaboration can multiply impact. Kia doesn't just write a check and walk away. The company actively helps figure out how to give recovered ocean plastic a second life in controlled applications, preventing it from returning to the environment. Meanwhile, The Ocean Cleanup gets reliable transportation and a committed partner helping solve one of recycling's biggest challenges: finding practical uses for recovered materials.

The work is already earning recognition, with Kia receiving the 2025 Newsweek Auto Disruptor Award for Sustainability.

Together, they're proving that cleaning our oceans requires innovation both on the water and on shore.