Plastic is Fantastic
ALPLA is convinced of this. With facts, entertainment and many good arguments, global campaigns on the subject of plastic are aimed directly at end consumers. Dominic Fiel, Head of Corporate Marketing & Communications, provides insight into the diverse campaigns and introduces the newly founded association of the same name, ‘Plastic is Fantastic’.
The ‘Plastic is Fantastic’ initiative is taking the next step and opening up to all committed companies in the plastics industry, as Dominic Fiel, Board Member & Executive Director of the newly founded Plastic is Fantastic Association, explains.
‘We are proud of plastic, and rightly so,’ emphasises Dominic Fiel, Head of Corporate Marketing & Communications at ALPLA. With great confidence and genuine conviction, ALPLA is committed to promoting the value of PET and other plastics – something that should benefit the entire industry. ‘Plastic packaging combines all the advantages: it is lightweight, safe, affordable, hygienic and recyclable. This makes them the smartest and most sustainable choice in almost all situations. At the same time, they are important for creating and securing prosperity in emerging regions of the world,’ explains Fiel. In addition, plastic often has the best carbon footprint and scores points with the bottle-to-bottle cycle.
With creative campaigns and facts instead of half-knowledge, ALPLA is fighting back against decades of global propaganda. ‘For many people, plastic is a fundamental evil and a perfect scapegoat for all political movements. But public opinion will not change on its own. It needs confident responses,’ says Fiel. In 2021, ALPLA became an advocate for plastic with its first end-consumer campaigns. ‘Going public has paid off. We are open about our products and their value to society. We don't mince words and rely on facts. This allows us to reach many people, convince them with good arguments and raise awareness for responsible use. This is particularly well received by the younger generation,’ says Fiel.
700 million impressions
ALPLA has now launched creative campaigns in 23 countries under the slogan ‘Plastic is Fantastic’. From Austria to the USA, they are correcting the negative image of plastics and also addressing problems such as littering and microplastics. With success: in 2025, the number of followers on social media exceeded 1.2 million and is expected to reach 2 million very soon. The diverse content was displayed around 700 million times worldwide. Even CEO Philipp Lehner is getting involved on TikTok, achieving several million views with his entertaining videos.
A few highlights from 2024 and 2025: In Germany, the #daskannkunststoff initiative invited guests from politics, business and science to Berlin for a dialogue. ALPLA drew attention to the advantages of the material in Atlanta with a public artwork made from recyclable plastic by Hyland Mather. La Vida Circular in Mexico brought big names such as Procter & Gamble and Colgate-Palmolive on board. The new showcase on the topic of plastic in the Material Worlds exhibition at the Vienna Technical Museum provides some eye-opening insights. Another highlight in 2025 was the first Plastic is Fantastic Day in Feldkirch, Austria. Experts from the plastics industry gathered under the motto ‘Powerful material, Powerful voice’ to discuss new developments, share knowledge and jointly further develop the Plastic is Fantastic strategy.
A highlight in 2025 was the first Plastic is Fantastic Day in Feldkirch, Austria. Experts from the plastics industry gathered under the motto ‘Strong material, strong voice’.
As diverse as the campaigns are, they all have one thing in common: criticism and polemics are kept to a minimum. ‘Our fears have vanished into thin air. The facts are on our side. We see this in conversations with NGOs and activists as well as in discussions with politicians. This confirms our strategy time and again,’ reports Dominic Fiel. The market has also noticed the positive effect on public opinion. ALPLA's first customers, suppliers and even competitors have already joined in. The Polish campaign #rePETujemy even won a PR award in 2023.
Now the ‘Plastic is Fantastic’ initiative is taking the next step and opening up to all committed companies in the plastics industry. Or as Dominic Fiel, Board Member & Executive Director of the association founded specifically for this purpose and based in Vienna, puts it: ‘Plastic is Fantastic is the North Star of the industry and home to all plastics. We are expressing this by integrating our activities into the new association, which already has other representatives of the plastics industry as members. And together with my colleague on the board, Dr Markus Knoche, I would like to cordially invite other interested companies to join us as well.’ The member companies will make their first joint appearance at the K trade fair in Düsseldorf from 8 to 15 October (North Entrance / N05).
Representatives of the plastics industry who would like to learn more about the initiative and the ‘Plastic is Fantastic’ association can contact Dominic Fiel directly at dominic.fiel@pif-association.com.
More information about the association: https://www.pif-association.com/en
More information about the initiative: https://www.plasticisfantastic.info/en