TORONTO, July 29, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In advance of Amazon’s (AMZN) quarterly earnings report tomorrow, which analysts predict will show a continued increase in sales – and a rapid growth in Prime membership – during the COVID-19 pandemic, Josh Laughren, Executive Director, Oceana Canada, issued the following statement calling on Amazon to give its customers a plastic-free packaging choice.1
“Amazon has a plastics problem. It’s time for the online retail giant to take the steps needed to reduce its plastic footprint on behalf of our planet. According to recent news reports, Amazon shipped seven billion packages in 2019, many of them packed in plastic.2 Ninety-one per cent of all plastic ever produced has been landfilled, burned or ended up in the ocean, which can devastate marine life.3”
“Oceana commissioned surveys of Amazon customers by Abacus Data in Canada and YouGov in the U.S. and the UK and found that in Canada, 89 per cent of Amazon Prime customers are concerned about the impact of plastic pollution. Eighty-one per cent would opt for plastic-free packaging and 40 per cent would choose to shop at online retailers that offered this option. For a company that credits its success to an ‘obsessive’ focus on its customers, Amazon needs to listen to them and provide a plastic-free choice. It’s the right thing to do and it’s just good business.”
To access the complete referenced survey results, please visit oceana.org/PlasticFreeAmazon. To find out about Oceana’s campaign to reduce plastics, go to oceana.org/plastics.
Oceana is the largest international advocacy organization dedicated solely to ocean conservation. Oceana is rebuilding abundant and biodiverse oceans by winning science-based policies in countries that control one-third of the world’s wild fish catch. With more than 225 victories that stop overfishing, habitat destruction, pollution, and the killing of threatened species like turtles and sharks, Oceana’s campaigns are delivering results. A restored ocean means that 1 billion people can enjoy a healthy seafood meal, every day, forever. Together, we can save the oceans and help feed the world.
Oceana Canada was established as an independent charity in 2015 and is part of the largest international advocacy group dedicated solely to ocean conservation. Oceana Canada has successfully campaigned to end the shark fin trade, make rebuilding depleted fish populations the law, improve the way fisheries are managed and protect marine habitat. We work with civil society, academics, fishers, Indigenous Peoples and the federal government to return Canada’s formerly vibrant oceans to health and abundance. By restoring Canada’s oceans, we can strengthen our communities, reap greater economic and nutritional benefits and protect our future.
1 “Here's What to Look for When Amazon Reports Earnings Thursday.” The Motley Fool. Published July 20, 2020 at https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/07/20/heres-what-to-look-for-when-amazon-reports-earning.aspx
2 Amazon, announced that it delivered 3.5 billion packages through its own delivery systems in 2019. Amazon spokespeople were quoted– in subsequent stories in Vox, US News and other outlets – that this represented “approximately half” of the company’s global shipping volume (and the rest was shipped through other carriers, like UPS).
3 Geyer R, Jambeck JR and Law KL (2017) Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made. Science Advances 19 Jul 2017:Vol. 3, no. 7, e1700782 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1700782. Available at: https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/7/e1700782
Contact: Tammy Thorne, tthorne@oceana.ca, 437-247-0954
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