On the initiative of the non-profit US shareholder organisation As You Sow, Kraft Heinz has agreed to set a target for reducing the overall consumption of plastic packaging.
The shareholders had previously called on Kraft Heinz to disclose, how the company intends to reduce the use of plastic packaging, including planned reduction strategies or targets, redesign of materials, substitution or reduction in the use of virgin plastics.
Kraft Heinz said it will „continue to advance its packaging goals and support a circular economy through a variety of initiatives and investments, including the reduction of virgin plastic, the redesign of packaging, the increased use of Use of recycled content and the further exploration and scaling of reuse models“.
„We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Kraft Heinz, which provides for a significant reduction in virgin plastic for packaging and also considers packaging redesign and innovative reuse models. We have similar proposals with Amazon, McDonald's and Kroger and hope that these companies can agree to reduce the use of plastic for packaging.“
Conrad MacKerron, Senior Vice President at As You Sow
45 per cent of Kroger shareholders and 35 per cent of Amazon shareholders supported proposals calling for a reduction in plastic consumption last year. Five other major companies - Keurig Dr Pepper, Mondelez International, PepsiCo, Target Corp. and Walmart - have committed to 2021 Following the submission of shareholder proposals by As You Sow committed to reducing plastic consumption.
Target and Keurig Dr Pepper agreed to reduce the use of plastics in branded packaging by 20 per cent, Walmart agreed to a 15 per cent reduction, Mondelez agreed to a five per cent reduction - all by 2025 - and PepsiCo agreed to a 20 per cent reduction by 2030 to. In total, the reduction in the use of virgin plastic announced by these five brands is likely to amount to more than 700,000 tonnes.
Source: As You Sow
