Later this year, Coors Light will be ditching plastic rings on its six-packs and replacing them with an environmentally friendlier option. The rings will be replaced and packaged in cardboard wrap carriers that are recyclable and sustainably sourced.

This environmentally friendly announcement came last week from Molson Coors (TAP), saying Coors Light is the largest beer brand in North America to make the switch. By 2025, all of the company’s 30 brands it distributes in North America will use cardboard packaging.

For decades, companies have used the plastic rings to hold their packs together but it poses a risk to wildlife and has been linked to increased ocean pollution. Experts expect there will be more plastic than fish in global oceans by 2050, according to the World Economic Forum.

“Our consumers like the thought of products they consume being environmentally friendly. The amount of plastic recycled is very, very low,” Molson Coors CEO Gavin Hattersley told CNN Business in an interview.

Molson Coors says the switch to cardboard wrap carriers will eliminate 1.7 million pounds of plastic annually, Hattersley noted, adding that “that’s a significant amount of plastic that will be out of the system forever.”

A recent survey from GlobalData found 57% of US consumers say that plastic-free packaging is very important in their purchasing decisions. The research firm said that plastic rings used in beer packaging have received “heavy backlash following viral images of ocean wildlife getting caught up in them.”

Molson decided to start the process with Coors Light because it’s the largest brand in its portfolio. The company is investing $85 million in new machinery at its factories to make the switch.

Cardboard packaging is already in use for Molson Coors beer brands distributed in the United Kingdom, and Hattersley said the company has made “significant progress” in the changeover in Canada.

Molson joins other brands making changes in the US and worldwide including Guinness, Budweiser Brewing Group and Carlsberg, who went a different route and created a “Snap Pack” that bonds cans together with glue.

Photo courtesy of MolsonCoors