25% of ExxonMobil Shareholders Approve Studying a Future With Less Virgin Plastic as Global Negotiators Discuss Reduced Production
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT: Stefanie Spear, sspear@asyousow.org, 216-387-1609
BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA—JUNE 15, 2023—While delegates from 180 countries debated a global treaty to combat plastic pollution that might include plastic production caps, one-quarter (25.3%) of ExxonMobil shareholders representing $66.7 billion supported a resolution filed by As You Sow asking the company to study how a one-third cut in demand for virgin single-use plastic would affect its financial position at the company’s recent annual meeting.
ExxonMobil is the world’s largest producer of single-use bound plastic resins and was recently identified as the world’s largest producer of plastic resins bound for single-use applications (11.6 million tons), resulting in as much as 6 million tons of plastic waste.
Single-use plastics are a major source of the 11 million tons of plastics that enter global waterways annually, fueling a global plastic pollution crisis. The Pew Charitable Trusts’ widely respected Breaking the Plastic Wave report found that plastic pollution can be reduced by 80% by 2040 through actions like a one-third demand reduction of plastics. The proposal asked the company to assess the impact of this scenario on its business.
“The strong vote at ExxonMobil asking it to prepare for a future with less plastic production aligns with calls from scores of countries, and major brands, using plastic packaging to curtail production,” said Conrad MacKerron, senior vice president of As You Sow. “The petrochemical industry must stop insisting that recycling alone will resolve the plastic pollution problem and face the reality that production cuts will be necessary and show investors how it will manage the growing risks to its production of single-use plastics.”
Fifty-seven member countries of the High Ambition Coalition to End Plastic Pollution (including Australia, France, Germany, Mexico, and the UK) have called for the global plastics treaty to include binding provisions “to restrain and reduce the production and consumption of primary plastic polymers to sustainable levels.” Brands that use resins made by companies like ExxonMobil are also calling for reductions. Coca-Cola Co, Nestle, PepsiCo, Unilever, and Walmart, members of the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, have stated that the top priority of a treaty should be “reduction of plastic production and use,” focusing on plastics with high leakage rates, short lives, and made using fossil-based virgin resources. The coalition also includes petrochemical company Borealis.
Recent reports from influential groups, including the United Nations Environment Program, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, and National Academy of Science, agree that the current rate of expansion of virgin plastic production is unsustainable, and cuts in plastic use are necessary.
The proposal also asked ExxonMobil to disclose information about the recycling technologies it will use as it begins to generate significant amounts of new resin from discarded plastic waste to ensure they are cost-effective, process and energy efficient, and environmentally sound.
A similar proposal attracted strong support of 30% at Dow Inc., the third largest producer of single-use bound plastics, and 11% at Phillips 66.
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As You Sow is the nation’s leading shareholder advocacy nonprofit, with a 30-year track record promoting environmental and social corporate responsibility and advancing values-aligned investing. Its issue areas include climate change, ocean plastics, pesticides, racial justice, workplace diversity, and executive compensation. Click here for As You Sow’s shareholder resolution tracker.