We wouldn't even have the problem of supposed "throwaway" packaging without government subsidies--in the form of municipal waste disposal--for producers and distributors of such packaging. 

Companies whose profits depend upon having municipalities dispose of the waste stream they generate should have to pay for that service, in the form of a surcharge or an additional corporate income tax.

If they pass the costs on to the consumer, as they would, this would have the effect of reducing consumption of plastic-packaged products. Good. Short of actually banning plastic packaging--an impossibility given the political power of  soft drink corporations--this is about all we can do.