NJPIRG's Toxics-Free Future News

April 21, 2009                     CONTACT:       
                                           Emily Stone (617) 482-0800
                                          Green Century Capital Management
                                           estone@greencentury.com
                                          Amy Galland (415) 391-3212 x42
                                           As You Sow
                                           agalland@asyousow.org

Chemical Threat Persists in Food and Beverage Packaging
Investors Grade Food and Beverage Companies on
 Efforts to Prevent Bisphenol A Contamination

BOSTON/SAN FRANCISCO – Fourteen of the largest public packaged food and beverage companies still use the controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA) in their packaging despite studies linking the synthetic sex hormone to developmental problems, heart disease and diabetes, according to a new report by investors Green Century Capital Management (“Green Century”) and As You Sow.

BPA is used in can linings and some hard clear plastic containers. The chemical is known to leak from packaging into food and beverages. In March, rising consumer concern about BPA led the six largest baby bottle manufacturers to announce that they would phase out BPA from all bottles sold in the U.S.

“Given the number of studies linking BPA to serious diseases and developmental disorders, its continued use poses unnecessary risks for companies in the packaged food industry,” states Amy Galland, who helped write the report as Research Director of As You Sow.

For the report, Seeking Safer Packaging, investors asked 20 publicly-traded companies what actions they are taking to respond to concerns regarding BPA. Green Century, an environmentally responsible investment advisory firm and manager of the Green Century Funds, initiated outreach to companies in November 2008. Of the fourteen companies that responded, investors found that all but four had failed to develop safer alternatives, and only one company had begun using a substitute.

Seeking Safer Packaging awarded top scores to Hain Celestial, Heinz, and Nestlé.  These companies were leaders because they research and test alternatives to BPA and because they plan to phase out the chemical in some products. According to the report, Heinz is the only respondent already using a substitute to BPA in some of its can linings. 

The other companies contacted were Campbell Soup, Coca-Cola, ConAgra, Chiquita, Dean Foods, Del Monte, General Mills, Hershey, Hormel, J.M. Smucker, Kellogg, Kraft, McCormick, PepsiCo, Sara Lee, Sysco, and Unilever.

According to Green Century and As You Sow, companies that continue to use BPA in food and beverage packaging face competitive, reputational, and potential market exclusion risks.

“Green Century is very concerned about the lack of urgency with which the packaged food industry is addressing BPA,” states Larisa Ruoff, Director of Shareholder Advocacy for Green Century. “Alternatives to BPA exist for many products. We believe companies should implement all feasible alternatives and increase investments into substitute can linings for all products, including highly-acidic foods.”

For more information about Green Century, visit http://www.greencentury.com. For more information about As You Sow, visit http://www.asyousow.org.