Shipping Industry Gets New Tool to Cut Plastic at Sea

Every cargo ship that crosses our oceans faces the same challenge: how to reduce plastic use when there's no simple playbook to follow.

The Maritime Association for Clean Seas (MACS) just changed that. The organization released a set of practical guides designed to help shipping companies make better choices about plastic before it ever reaches their vessels.

Oliver Kade, Director of MACS, explained the problem simply. Reducing the shipping industry's plastic footprint is essential, but companies have been struggling without a clear framework. These new guides give the entire industry a common path forward.

The breakthrough came from MACS' Sustainable Plastic Procurement Working Group, which brought together shipping companies, suppliers, and industry experts. They identified three major roadblocks holding everyone back.

First, the industry lacked a shared vocabulary. Terms like "recyclable" and "compostable" meant different things to different companies, creating confusion across the supply chain.

Second, finding plastic alternatives proved complicated. Procurement teams needed to verify that any substitute was safe, affordable, available, and actually practical for life at sea.

Third, shipping companies were making scattered, inconsistent demands on suppliers. This fragmented approach made it impossible for suppliers to invest in better products at a meaningful scale.

The Ripple Effect

The new MACS guides tackle all three problems at once. They include a Maritime Plastics Taxonomy that creates shared language, a Priority Maritime Plastics list showing which items to phase out first, and a Decision Support framework for evaluating alternatives.

Fifty-three participants from 28 organizations across the global maritime value chain helped shape these tools. Major shipping companies like Berge Bulk, Pacific International Lines, and X-Press Feeders contributed their real-world experience.

Michael Blanding from Berge Bulk highlighted the breakthrough. His company wanted to reduce plastic use but couldn't convert ambition into action without clear, consistent signals to send suppliers. Now those signals exist.

The guides support the International Maritime Organization's Action Plan on marine litter, which requires measures to cut plastic pollution from ships by 2030. While most efforts have focused on managing plastic waste after it appears, MACS chose an earlier intervention point.

Kade summed up the philosophy perfectly: the most sustainable plastic is the one never used.

The three practical guides are open for public consultation through August 16, 2026. MACS is inviting maritime companies, suppliers, ports, caterers, and sustainability professionals to review and improve the guidance before final versions roll out.

An entire industry just got the tools it needs to protect our oceans, one purchasing decision at a time.