“Activism is my rent for living on the planet.” ~Alice Walker Many of us want to do what we can to help the planet. Stop buying useless junk. Recycling properly. Switching to reusable everything. But it’s not enough. It’s a fantastic and necessary start. But it’s not enough. What we need is for plastic polluters to take accountability for their part in this plastic pollution crisis. By now, if you’re an avid reader of our articles, you know that plastic comes from fossil fuels. So not only are they polluting our planet with greenhouse gasses, they are also leaving plastics, that will be here basically forever, for consumers to deal with. Since the 1950’s global plastic production has gone from 2 million tonnes (approx.. 2,204,622 tons) of plastic being produced per year to 381 million tonnes (approx.. 419,980,609 tons) produced in 2015 [1]. And that number isn’t expected to plumet any time soon. So, what can we do about it?! Well, we need to stop plastic pollution at its source, the producers. And one way to do that is to tell them you want them to stop producing plastics. Now that we know what to do, let’s figure out how to do it. Research Before you write a letter, you’ll want to do some research and find out facts about the company you are writing to. Are they on the top 10 of plastic polluters? (Find that answer below). Do they have any programs in place to deal with their pollution? You’ll also want to research plastics in general. How are they affecting your community, region, or state? How are they affecting wildlife and humans? How do they affect the economy and health of your community? These are all important things to know before you start writing. It gives you authority and shows you know what you’re talking about. Recommended Resources: https://www.breakfreefromplastic.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/BRAND-AUDIT-REPORT-2021.pdf https://www.officialtrashpirates.com/post/corporate-responsibility-stopping-the-problem-where-it-starts
https://www.officialtrashpirates.com/post/why-are-we-not-recycling-plastic
Who do I write? We recently wrote an article about stopping plastic pollution at its source. In the article we listed the top 10 corporate plastic polluters as of 2021. You can find the article here: https://www.officialtrashpirates.com/post/corporate-responsibility-stopping-the-problem-where-it-starts
Top 10 Corporate Plastic Polluters (2021) [2]:
1. Coca-Cola
CEO – James Quincey
Customer Service: (800) 438-2653
Contact Form: https://www.coca-colacompany.com/contact-us/contact-us-form
Twitter Handles: @CocaColaCo & @CocaCola
2. Pepsico
Customer Service: (800) 433-2652
Contact Page: https://contact.pepsico.com/pepsico/contact-us
CEO – Ramon Laguarta
Twitter Handle: @PepsiCo
3. Unilever
CEO – Alan Jope
Customer Service: (800) 298-5018
Contact Page: https://www.unilever.com/contact/
Twitter Handle: @Unilever
4. Nestle
CEO – Mark Schneider
Customer Service: (800) 225-2270
Contact Form: https://www.nestle.com/info/contactus/contactus#contact-form
Twitter Handles: @Nestle & @NestleUSA
5. Procter & Gamble
CEO – David S. Taylor
Customer Service: (513) 983-1100
Address: The Procter & Gamble Company, 1 P&G Plaza Cincinnati, OH 45202
Twitter Handle: @ProcterGamble
6. Mondelez
CEO – Dirk Van de Put
Customer Service: (855) 535-5648
Contact Form: https://www.mondelezinternational.com/Investors/Contact-Us
Twitter Handle: @MDLZ
7. Philip Morris Intl.
CEO – Jacek Olczak
Contact Form: https://www.pmi.com/contact-us/product-concerns
Twitter Handle: @InsidePMI
8. Danone
CEO – Antoine de Saint-Affrique
Addresses: Broomfield, Colorado Office, 12002 Airport Way, Broomfield, CO 80021
White Plains, New York Office, 1 Maple Ave, White Plains, NY 10605
Twitter Handles: @Danone & @DanoneNA
9. Mars, Inc.
CEO – Grant F. Reid
Contact Form: https://www.mars.com/contact-us
Twitter Handle: @MarsGlobal
10. Colgate-Palmolive
CEO – Noel Wallace
Customer Service: (800) 468-6502
Contact Page: https://www.colgatepalmolive.com/en-us/contact-us
Twitter Handle: @CP_News
What to include in your letter? -Who you are and where you are from - Facts about plastic pollution and any specifics related to that company (site your sources) -What you want them to do about this issue -Contact information so they can get back to you (with parent permission) Tips and Tricks -Make your letter to the point; be direct -Don’t go over 1 page -Make sure your facts are strong and relevant and your sources are solid One More Thing Once you’ve written the letter, make sure to head over to our petition to support the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act! officialtrashpirates.com/litterpickerscampaign
Article Sources [1] Ritchie, Hannah and Roser, Max. Plastic Pollution. Sep 2018. https://ourworldindata.org/plastic-pollution. [2] BreakFreeFromPlastic.org. Brand Audit Report. 2021. https://www.breakfreefromplastic.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/BRAND-AUDIT-REPORT-2021.pdf