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Forty-Seven State Legislators call on Whole Foods to put Planet over Plastic
MAY 2021 LETTER URGES COMPANY TO TAKE ACTION ON PLASTIC PACKAGING
John Mackey, CEO
Whole Foods Market
550 Bowie Street
Austin, TX 78703-4644
May 6, 2021
Dear John Mackey:
We, the undersigned state leaders, are writing to ask that you join us as a partner in combating the plastic pollution crisis. We understand that Whole Foods has led the supermarket industry in reducing plastic waste in the past, and we thank you for that.
However, we are deeply concerned by the scourge of plastic litter that enters our waterways. Plastic waste enters the ocean at the rate of 15 million tons per year — the equivalent to two garbage trucks dumping a load of plastic in the sea every single minute.
And single-use plastic packaging — used for just a few minutes before polluting our rivers and oceans for hundreds of years — is a major source of this pollution. In 2019, The Ocean Conservancy found that plastic food wrappers were the number one item polluting beaches worldwide.
Thus, we ask that Whole Foods Market join us as a partner in our efforts to address the plastic pollution crisis by committing to concrete and verifiable steps that will reduce your company’s plastic footprint.
Other grocery retailers are showing that this type of commitment is achievable. The regional grocery chain Giant Eagle has committed to eliminating all single-use plastic in its operations by 2025; now we need a national grocer to make similarly ambitious commitments. However, Whole Foods Market scored an “F” in the report released by As You Sow called Waste and Opportunity 2020: Searching for Corporate Leadership.
We ask that you make the aforementioned, necessary changes to lessen your impact on our oceans and rivers as they play a vital role in supporting a healthy, livable planet for wildlife and our communities. We are going to need all hands on deck to deal with the plastic pollution crisis.
Signed,
Assembly Speaker pro Tempore Kevin Mullin, California
Assemblymember Jim Wood, California
Assemblymember Laura Friedman, California
Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez, California
Assemblymember Phil Ting, California
Assemblymember Robert Rivas, California
Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo, California
Senator Ben Allen, California
Senator Scott Wiener, California
State House Representative Anna Eskamani, Florida
Representative Ann Williams, Illinois
Representative Joyce Mason, Illinois
Representative Michelle Mussman, Illinois
Delegate Brooke Lierman, Maryland
Delegate David Moon, Maryland
Delegate Jen Terrasa, Maryland
Delegate Marc Korman, Maryland
Delegate Ron Watson, Maryland
Delegate Sara Love, Maryland
Delegate Shaneka Henson, Maryland
Senator Jeff Waldstreicher, Maryland
Senator Mary Washington, Maryland
Representative Marjorie Decker, Massachusetts
Representative Sydney Jordan, Minnesota
Senator Ann Johnson-Stewart, Minnesota
Representative Judith Spang, New Hampshire
Senator Becky Whitley, New Hampshire
Senator David Watters, New Hampshire
Assemblymember Fred W. Thiele Jr., New York
Assemblymember Harvey Epstein, New York
Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon, New York
Assemblymember Steven Englebright, New York
Senator Dominick Ruggerio, Rhode Island
Representative Ana-Maria Ramos, Texas
Representative Donna Howard, Texas
Representative Joe Moody, Texas
Representative John Bucy III, Texas
Representative Michelle Beckley, Texas
Representative Rafael Anchia, Texas
Representative Ron Reynolds, Texas
Representative Vikki Goodwin, Texas
Senator Jose Menendez, Texas
Delegate Candi Mundon King, Virgina
Delegate Ibraheem S. Samirah, Virginia
Delegate Kaye Kory, Virginia
Delegate Patrick Hope, Virginia
Senator Jamie Pedersen, Washington
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