(Toronto) – Greenpeace activists in Canada, the U.S., Switzerland, and several other countries around the world [1] unveiled “plastic monsters” covered with branded plastic packaging at Nestlé offices and consumer hubs today, calling on the multinational corporation to end its reliance on single-use plastic.
As part of a global day of action led by Greenpeace and allies from the Break Free from Plastic movement, Greenpeace Switzerland activists accompanied a 65-foot long and 20-foot high monster to Nestlé headquarters in Vevey, while Greenpeace US activists joined a 15-foot tall monster in a visit to Nestlé’s headquarters in Arlington, VA today. In Canada, Greenpeace activists followed these actions with a visit to a Nestlé factory in Toronto this morning with a 9-foot tall monster to draw attention to Nestlé’s plastic pollution gathered from streets, rivers, and beaches, and to demand that Nestlé take responsibility for the 1.7 million metric tonnes of single-use plastic it produces annually.
In response to the global day of action against Nestlé, Greenpeace Canada’s Head of Oceans and Plastics campaign Sarah King said:
“Nestlé was Canada’s top plastic polluter in 2018 [2] , and it’s little wonder as the global company produced an alarming 1.7 million tonnes of plastic packaging – over 300 garbage trucks worth a day – last year. Billions of Nestlé products are used for a few seconds and then thrown away, overflowing waste streams and contaminating our green spaces, communities, ecosystems and food chains, leaving a trash legacy for future generations.[3]
“Today, people in Toronto, Winnipeg, Ottawa [4] and around the world are demanding that Nestlé take real action to reduce its egregious plastic footprint, confront the throwaway culture that underpins its current business model, and invest in delivery systems based on refill and reuse. Leadership isn’t substituting plastic with another single-use material like paper or bioplastic, or hoping recyclable plastic products will miraculously all get captured, it is immediately reducing the production of single-use plastic packaging.”
From Manila to Rotterdam, and along the Rhine with a “plastic monster” to Nestlé’s headquarters in Switzerland, Greenpeace has been raising awareness about the plastic production crisis in towns and villages across the globe. Greenpeace is demanding that fast-moving consumer goods companies (FMCGs) like Nestlé, Unilever, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Danone, Johnson & Johnson and Mars be transparent and active in their immediate reduction in the production of plastic packaging while investing in the alternative delivery system of refill and reuse. [5] To date, over 3 million people from around the world have signed a petition calling on brands to take action.
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Photos from the Global Day of Action against Nestlé are available here
Notes:
[1] Activists also held protests at Nestlé offices in the Philippines, Germany, Kenya, Slovenia, and its sub-brand San Pellegrino in Italy.
[2] Nestlé was found to be the top producer of branded plastic pollution in cleanups and brand audits done across Canada in 2018. Full results here.
[3] Nestlé was also also one of the top corporate plastic polluters identified in a worldwide cleanup and brand audit effort conducted by the Break Free From Plastic movement last year. Full results here
[4] Members of Greenpeace local groups in Winnipeg and Ottawa will also unveil plastic monsters in busy centres today to raise awareness about Nestle’s massive role in the plastic pollution crisis and invite people to call on the company to take action.
[5] Eleven Fast-moving consumer goods companies (FMCGs) were found to be the main corporations behind the plastics pollution pandemic in a report released by Greenpeace International last year. Full results here.
For more information, please contact:
Philippa Duchastel de Montrouge, Communications Officer, Greenpeace Canada, [email protected]; + 1 (514) 929-8227
Capucine Dayen, Greenpeace USA Global Comms Lead for Plastics: +33 647 971 819, [email protected]
