Shareholders Press for Reduction and Report of Plastic Consumption from Companies

Recently, shareholder groups have pushed companies to be more transparent in reporting and reducing plastic usage to benefit the environment, as well as, financial health.

With the 2024 election on its way, major changes within state legislation and influential international practices already had potential to drastically change the regulation of chemical recycling in the United States. Now, with the influence of these important shareholders, it gives so much more hope for the preservation of the environment. 

Companies like Disney, Hormel and Choice Hotel have already begun making efforts in reducing their plastic footprint due to the nudge from their investors.

Major shareholders are pushing for these companies' accountability in the current state of the environment and transparency in their plastic use consumption to their investors. More than 1,500 of these shareholder institutions, which manage over $40 trillion in assets, have made movements to stop investing in large fossil fuel companies or have persuaded other companies to take action.

For instance, Green Century Capital Management is an activist investment firm that manages over $1 billion in assets and was a major factor in the switch in plastic consumption from Disney and Choice Hotels. The strategy of these firms to get big companies to switch involves negotiating before shareholder resolutions are voted on, essentially  just trying to talk with the companies rather than confront them. While Disney is a company that is ahead of the curve in limiting single-use plastics in its cruise ships and theme parks, Green Century stated they want more transparency in the companies actions.

You Sow is a non-profit shareholder advocacy organization that is also able to persuade companies for the cause. You Sow discussed with Hormel, a food corporation, ways to take more responsibility for their plastic packaging. The organization managed to persuade investor holdings around $2 trillion in shares to vote for 48 revolutions they made in 2023.

During “proxy season” every year, shareholder advocacy groups use the time to utilize their power in the company. They file shareholder resolutions, which are small proposals that ask the companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, plastic usage and disclose the quantity of these actions to the public.

The recent pledges of these companies show that they are starting to recognize the damage that their businesses are doing to the environment with the consumption of single-use plastic. With a strong push from investors, more harsh state regulations and the United Nations global plastics treaty that is currently being negotiated, the US is set to have a major reduction in single-use plastic in the next few years.