A letter to Macca's

Here is a letter I sent to McDonald's yesterday:

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7 March 2016

Mr Andrew Gregory

Managing Director/ CEO

McDonald’s Australia

Head Office

21-29 Central Avenue

Thornleigh  NSW  2120

Dear Andrew,

RE:  McDonald’s responsible use of plastic

I am writing to you regarding the use by McDonald’s Australia of plastic throwaway items. These include, but are not limited to, spoons, sticks, straws, cups, coffee cups, lids and sauce containers.

I wish to request that McDonald’s, considered a leader in the fast food industry, takes the bold step of adopting more environmentally responsible practices by discontinuing the use of these items.

There is a good range of bamboo, timber and paper products which can be used in place of plastic. A bamboo stirrer will biodegrade and bamboo is a renewable resource. A plastic stirrer will not biodegrade, and will sit in a gutter, often missed by sweepers (where there are sweepers). It may even be mistaken for food by a seabird or turtle, potentially causing great harm to that animal.

Plastic pollution, on both land and sea, is now no joke. A report presented at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos found that, by 2050, plastic will outnumber fish in our oceans.[1] If a piece of rubbish can get near a gutter (as takeaway items are more prone to do), it can get to a drain and very quickly to the ocean.

I do a lot of rubbish clean-up in my local area and, despite the nearest McDonald’s outlet being over 20km away, I always find McDonald’s rubbish on the verges of our country roads and banks of our rivers.  The most common item is the drink cup lid with straw still in it.

I understand the consumer has a responsibility to dispose of their rubbish “thoughtfully”. Most do. But much of the litter is accidental due to wind, rains, overflowing bins or traffic. There will always be a few inconsiderate litterbugs unfortunately, but they are probably not the main offenders.

I have seen McDonald’s exercising responsibility and lining public street bins outside their stores with thick plastic bin liners, which staff frequently empty. This is a good step to a tidy-looking store, and to diverting this waste from our waterways. Unfortunately, this rubbish will all go directly to landfill. How much longer can we continue to bury non-biodegradable waste in holes in our valuable soil? Burial is a practice that predates plastic; its original intention was composting. It is now a far and sad cry from this. 

If I take a straw from McDonald’s, it will stay on the planet forever.

In Australia, we are currently witnessing a Senate Inquiry into marine plastic pollution, and I believe industry responsibility, in the form of phase-outs, will be a major recommendation.

I recall in the early 1990s, with the threat of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) to the ozone layer, McDonald’s took a lead by phasing out Styrofoam burger clamshells, replacing them with paper wrappers. They also replaced the bleached paper bags with unbleached brown paper bags. It wasn’t long before the rest of the fast food industry followed this lead.

McDonald’s has shown it is capable of change, responding to community and environmental needs and indeed, of leading industry. Today, McDonald’s Australia can boast café-quality coffee and veggie burgers. Twenty years ago no one would have imagined such a thing!

It is now time for McDonald’s to again lead the fast-food industry and phase out plastic straws, plates, lids, cups, spoons and sauce containers – and any other item I may have overlooked. Viable alternatives exist in paper, bamboo and timber.

I would also direct your attention to two industry leaders in their fields who have recently taken bold, innovative steps to minimise plastic. Ikea has decided to package their products in mushroom foam, while Johnson & Johnson UK has today promised to phase out plastic sticks in cotton buds.

Andrew, I urge you, as the Managing Director and CEO to make this executive decision – or at least take it to your board. The Australian land and marine environment (and the world environment – Australian marine pollution has been found inside the stomachs of mutton-birds on Lord Howe Island – an Australian territory far outside Australian waters) depends on this.

I have attached a link to my submission to the Senate Inquiry into marine pollution, which I hope provides some further statistics and references on this issue. I would also like to direct you to my Facebook page, link above, where I share information on issues and solutions to the problem of plastic pollution.

I look forward to your response on this issue.

·        * Link to my submission to Senate Inquiry into marine pollution www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communications/Marine_plastics/Submissions  (click to page 3 and download submission 48).

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[1] The New Plastics Economy Rethinking the future of plastics, Ellen McArthur Foundation report to World Economic Forum, January 2016 www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_New_Plastics_Economy.pdf