June '21
SC Johnson and the Global Ocean Plastic Crisis
Syeda Maseeha Qumer
Adjunct Research Faculty, IBS Case Research Center, IBS Hyderabad (Under IFHE - A Deemed to be
University u/s 3 of the UGC Act, 1956), Hyderabad, Telangana, India. E-mail: maseeha@icmrindia.org
Debapratim Purkayastha
Late Director, IBS Case Research Center, IBS Hyderabad (Under IFHE - A Deemed to be University
u/s 3 of the UGC Act, 1956), Hyderabad, Telangana, India. E-mail: debapratim@ibsindia.org
The case discusses S C Johnson & Son, Inc.'s (SCJ) efforts to tackle the global crisis
of plastic waste in oceans. It highlights how SCJ's CEO and Chairman H Fisk Johnson
(Johnson) is bringing global attention to the issue of ocean plastic by raising awareness
of this crisis and potential solutions by reaching and engaging people around the
globe. The case explores how ocean plastic pollution is a complex environmental issue
and the role companies like SCJ can play to combat it. SCJ is doing its part to address
the problem of plastic pollution in oceans, including committing to make 100% of its
plastic packaging recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025, and signing the New
Plastic Economy Global Commitment to help create a circular economy. SCJ had
partnered with social enterprise Plastic Bank to increase recycling while helping address
poverty. It had also launched the first 100% recycled ocean plastic bottle in its major
home cleaning brand, Windex. However, the company faced some challenges in its
fight against ocean plastic waste including complexity of the plastic value chain, making
improvements in waste management, lack of adequate government regulations, and in
changing consumer behavior towards plastic use. With ocean plastic waste being such
a critical issue for the planet as well as human life, how could SCJ ensure that its
commitment goes far enough to drive change on the ground? What can SCJ do to capitalize
on its commitment and encourage more consumers to use its 'plastic positive' products?
Human life on this planet depends very heavily on the health of the ocean
ecosystem, and the changes that are taking place are scary, whether it's ocean
acidification, plastic in the ocean, overfishing-all of those things... Plastic waste is
probably the single biggest environmental issue for our company. ... It was only
natural for us to get involved with Plastic Bank and their effort to collect oceanbound
plastic. I like it because it not only gives us a source of plastic we can recycle
back into our products, but it's got a great environmental benefit
and a social benefit as well.i
- H Fisk Johnson,
CEO, SC Johnson, in March 2020
Introduction
In October 2019, SC Johnson & Son, Inc. (SCJ), US-based global leading manufacturer
of household consumer cleaning products, expanded its partnership with social
enterprise Plastic Bank1 to develop recycling infrastructure in developing nations and prevent plastic waste from entering the oceans while providing economic and
social benefits to communities. Under the new agreement, it planned to set up a total
of 509 plastic collection points across the globe, projected to collect 30,000 metric tons
of plastic waste over a period of three years-the equivalent of preventing about 1.5
billion plastic bottles from entering waterways and the ocean. As part of the program,
local waste collectors could bring the plastic they had collected to any collection point
and exchange it for digital tokens they could use to buy the goods and services they
needed.
Earlier, in October 2018, SCJ teamed up with Plastic Bank to address the ocean
plastic issue and established nine plastic waste collection centers in Indonesia. "More
than 8 million metric tons of plastic leak into the ocean every year, so building
infrastructure that stops plastic before it gets into the ocean is key to solving this
issue. I'm particularly pleased that this program we developed with Plastic Bank
helps to address poverty and this critical environmental issue at the same time,"ii said
H Fisk Johnson (Fisk), Chairman and CEO, SCJ.
Ocean plastic pollution is a complex and huge environmental problem causing
serious damage to marine ecosystems. Fisk, the fifth-generation leader of the 134-
year-old family company and a dedicated proponent of sustainability, was deeply affected
by the pervasiveness of microplastics in oceans and their impact on marine life. Given
his company's long legacy of environmental leadership and commitment to protecting
the planet, Fisk had been at the forefront in tackling this issue in several ways,
including announcing commitments to reduce the company's plastic footprint and to
make 100% of its plastic packaging recyclable, reusable, or compostable by 2025;
partnering with Plastic Bank to increase recycling while helping address poverty;
signing the New Plastic Economy Global Commitment to help create a circular economy
for plastics; and, launching the first bottle made from 100% recycled ocean plastic to
package a major home cleaning brand. In addition to this, Fisk constantly engaged
with international scientists, marine biologists, environmental advocacy groups, and
people in communities affected by plastic pollution and raised awareness about this
issue through social media campaigns.
Analysts said that addressing the ocean plastic waste would be a critical issue for
the company going forward due to the predisposition of consumers to use single-use
plastics, lack of adequate government regulations, complexity of the plastic value
chain, and transparency dilemmas. Fisk believed that consumers, companies, NGOs,
and governments must all collaborate to tackle the ocean plastic waste problem. Some
analysts said SCJ being a privately held family company, it could do more to address
the issue. Some critics, however, pointed out that SCJ used high amounts of plastic in
packaging and that its products were partly responsible for the ocean plastic waste
crisis that the company was working to resolve. According to John Hocevar, Oceans
Campaign Director, Greenpeace2 US, "SC Johnson should prioritize continuing to
reduce its plastic use, rather than relying on collection systems to try to capture it all
before it ends up polluting our oceans, waterways, and communities. SC Johnson's new approach only perpetuates an outdated business model that keeps the cycle of
pollution going. Much of the plastic the company labels as 'recyclable' actually ends up
in landfills, incinerators, or our oceans. A Windex (home cleaning brand) bottle made of
collected plastics would not save our oceans-eliminating throwaway plastic will."iii
As Fisk championed the critical need to end ocean bound plastic waste, some
important questions before him were: Could he address the problem and bring real
and sustained change in the way plastic waste was dumped into the oceans? Could he
engage more people around the globe on this issue and lead the way for other companies?
How can he further leverage SCJ's committment to ocean sustainability and break
consumers' addiction to plastic? How should Fisk go about scaling up efforts, alongside
introducing improvements in waste management to reduce ocean plastic pollution?
What should he do to build an effective partnership among various stakeholders to
tackle the issue?
Backgroun d Note
The history of SCJ dates back to 1886 when its founder, Samuel Curtis Johnson
(Samuel), a salesman, purchased a parquet flooring business from Racine Hardware
Manufacturing Coin Racine, Wisconsin, and founded his own company. By 1898, Samuel
had developed a line of floor care products made from wax that generated more sales
than the entire original flooring business. SCJ's legacy of giving back to communities
started with Samuel who donated 10% of his income for civic improvements to be
made in his hometown Racine.
In 1906, Samuel's son, Herbert F Johnson Sr (Herbert Sr), became a business
partner and the company was formally named SC Johnson & Son. In 1928, Herbert
Sr died suddenly, leaving his son H F Johnson, Jr. (Herbert Jr), to take over the reins
of the company. Herbert Jr was credited with taking the company to new heights with
his commitment to quality and science and technology. In 1954, Herbert Jr's son, Sam
Johnson (Sam), joined the family's business as New Products Director and launched
successful new brands like Raid (bug repellent) and Glade (air freshener). He became
the company's President in 1966 and Chairman the following year. In 1975, in an
early show of environmental leadership, Sam banned ozone-destroying
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) from all the company's products. One of the first large
companies to take a public stance against a substance that harmed the environment,
SCJ was also credited with helping build support among corporations for broader
bans.iv Sam was also credited with transforming SCJ into a global powerhouse with
his vision and principles. By the end of the 1990s, SCJ had a presence in over 65
countries, covering six continents. In 1991, SCJ published its first sustainability report
that made it one of the first consumer packaged goods companies in the world to
report openly and extensively about its programs and policies.
Fisk, Sam's son, joined SCJ in 1987 and served in a variety of senior level
management and marketing positions. He was appointed as Chairman of the company
in 2000. Like his father, Fisk was dedicated to innovation and the principles of
sustainability. According to him, SCJ being a private company, did not have to worry
about quarterly earnings or pressures to maximize shareholder value and could focus
on doing the right thing for the long term. In 2001, SCJ launched the Greenlist program,3 which evaluated each product ingredient for its potential impact on human
health and the environment. In 2002, SCJ became one of the first Fast Moving
Consumer Goods (FMCGs) companies to join the US Environmental Protection
Agency's (EPA) Leaders program, a voluntary partnership to reduce Greenhouse Gas
(GHG) emissions. In 2004, Fisk assumed the role of CEO in SCJ.
SCJ claimed that it always put purpose ahead of profits and took action to address
concerns related to the environmental or health effects of the chemicals in its products.
In 2004, it eliminated polyvinylidene chloride from the composition of its popular
brand Saran Wrap due to environmentalists' concerns that burning of the ingredient
would release toxic chemicals into the environment. The popularity of the product, as
well as sales, suffered as a result. But Fisk said that being a privately-owned family
company, SCJ could make such decisions, even if it hurt its bottom line.
In 2009, SCJ started an expansive product transparency program as part of which
it launched a website, WhatsInsideSCJohnson.com. The ingredients of more than
8,700 products it sold worldwide were listed on the website.
In 2011, SCJ unveiled concentrated refill options for its Windex home cleaning
brand in keeping with its commitment to increase packaging reuse and reduce plastic
waste. Thereafter, the company expanded concentrated refill options to its other popular
cleaning brands such as Pledge, Scrubbing Bubbles, and Shout. The refills used nearly
80% less plastic than a new trigger bottle. The company also focused on eliminating
unnecessary packaging for its products. Between 2011 and 2017, SCJ eliminated 9.5
million kilograms of materials from its packaging.
In 2015, SCJ was awarded the World Environment Center's Gold Medal for
International Corporate Achievement in Sustainable Development for its focus on
sustainability and transparency initiatives. In 2017, Fisk received the Global
Conservation Hero award from environmental organization Conservation International
for his commitment to the environment and actions that had had a transformative
impact on the planet and its people. In April 2018, the company rebranded itself by
adopting a new tagline, "A Family Company at Work for a Better World", to highlight
its purpose.
As of early 2000, SCJ was one of the world's leading manufacturers of household
cleaning products with operations in more than 70 countries and sales virtually in
every country. Some of its well-known brands were Glade, Kiwi, Mr Muscle, Off !,
Pledge, Raid, Scrubbing Bubbles, Shout, Windex, and Ziploc. For the fiscal year-ended
June 30, 2019, SCJ generated revenues of US$10.5 bn and employed around 13,000
employees.v Its competitors included Procter & Gamble Company, Unilever, Johnson
& Johnson, Colgate Palmolive, Nestle and Reckitt Benckiser (see Exhibit I).
Global Ocean Plastic Crisis
Ocean plastic pollution is a complex issue and one of the most pressing environmental
concerns facing the world. According to a 2016 study published by the World Economic
Forum, about 8 million metric tons of plastic end up in the oceans annually, which is
equivalent to a garbage truckload of plastic being dumped into the ocean every minute
(see Exhibit II and Exhibit III). The main sources of ocean plastic were land-based,
from sewer overflows, beach visitors, inadequate waste disposal and management,
industrial activities, construction, and illegal dumping (see Exhibit IV). As per
estimates, there were up to 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic weighing about 250,000 tons
floating on the oceans world over. A significant amount of this waste came from
rivers which carried plastic waste from deep inland to the sea. Rivers were thus major
contributors to ocean pollution.
According to experts, waste water treatment systems could remove approximately
95-97% of solid waste, but the remaining 3-5% waste mostly comprising microplastics4
remained in treated water and slipped into the oceans. About 86% of the plastic that
made its way into the oceans globally originated in Asia, followed by Africa at 7.8%,
and South America at 4.8%vi (see Exhibit V). River Yangtze in China was the top
polluting river, contributing to over 4% of annual ocean plastic pollution. Experts
estimated that by 2050, there would be more plastic than fish in the ocean.
Ocean plastics disrupted marine ecosystems and negatively impacted aquatic
animals. Over 1 million marine animals including mammals, fish, sharks, turtles,
and sea birds, died every year after ingesting plastic or getting entangled in it. Ocean
plastic also threatened food safety and quality, human health, and coastal tourism,
and contributed to climate change. Microplastics, which were non-biodegradable,
entered the food chain as fish and other marine creatures that lived in the sea ingested
these tiny particles. Several chemicals used in the production of plastic materials
were known to be carcinogenic and to interfere with the endocrine system, causing
developmental, reproductive, neurological, and immune disorders in both humans
and wildlife. According to the 5 Gyres Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated
to ocean conservation, "Once in the water, plastic microbeads attract persistent organic
pollutants like flame retardants and other industrial chemicals linked to human health
problems-even cancer. A single plastic microbead can be one million times more toxic
than the water around it. These pollutants work their way up the food chain and onto
our plates."vii Aside from its impacts on biodiversity, the ocean plastic crisis also caused
substantial negative socioeconomic impacts. Communities that derived income from
tourism, fishing, and other ocean-based activities were economically affected due to
loss in aesthetic and economic value of these industries.
The issue of ocean plastic was also high on the global policy agenda as the UN
Sustainable Development Goalviii (SDG) 14 "Life Below Water" called for action to
"conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable
development."
SCJ Dives in to Address the Issue
Fisk, an avid ocean diver, had seen ocean plastic firsthand and was deeply affected by
its devastating impact on marine life and ocean ecosystems. "As a lifelong diver, it's
only natural for me to want to do what we can to protect the ocean. I've been diving
for 47 years now, and I have probably done over a thousand dives. I've had a chance to
see how the ocean has changed over those years, and I have seen more and more
plastic waste in the ocean. I have seen more and more pressure on the health of the
ocean ecosystems,"ix he said. Fisk pointed out that the whole world, including human
beings, was in peril due to ocean acidification, overfishing, and plastic in the ocean.
SCJ was known for its long-standing commitment to doing what was right for the
people and the planet and hence Fisk believed that it was the responsibility of the
company to address the proliferation of ocean plastic waste. Throughout FY 2019,
Fisk brought global attention to the issue of ocean plastic and the need for collaboration
on solutions. This included understanding the pervasiveness of microplastics and
their impact on the health of ocean ecosystems, analyzing the impact of plastic on
marine ecosystems and sharing his conversations with international experts from
organizations such as Conservation International and Ocean Wise. He traveled to
countries such as Liberia, the Philippines, and Panama to see where plastic waste
collected on the beaches and how it entered oceans from waterways and shared work
being done to address this. "The whole issue of plastic waste from our products going
into landfills is the single biggest environmental issue for our company,"x he said.
In October 2018, Fisk was one of the first CEOs to sign "The New Plastics Economy
Global Commitment", which was described as a groundbreaking coalition of businesses
and governments led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundationxi to tackle the growing global
crisis of plastic pollution. The commitment was signed by more than 250 organizations to help create a circular economy for plastics. As part of the commitment, SCJ planned
to make all of its plastic packaging either reusable, recyclable, or compostable by
2025 (see Exhibit VI). Upon signing the commitment, Fisk said, "We measure our
success not by the financial report of the next quarter, but by the world we leave for
the next generation. Together with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and other global
organizations, we are making ambitious commitments and taking united action to
create a new plastics economy that helps stop plastic from becoming waste."xii In
January 2019, SCJ became the 10th global partner of Ellen MacArthur Foundation to
drive initiatives that would accelerate transition to a circular economy.
In March 2018, SCJ partnered with Oceanic Society5 to launch a global engagement
campaign called "Five for 50" focused on exclusive explorations of five key ocean
habitats. The campaign brought business leaders, ocean experts, celebrities, social
media influencers, philanthropists, and members of the public to the forefront of ocean
conservation in some of the world's most vital ocean habitats in Palau, Indonesia,
Mexico, Trinidad, and the Galapagos Islands. Each expedition explored ocean
conservation issues including plastic pollution, climate change, and fisheries
management. Fisk was part of the first expedition to Palau in November 2018. On
this expedition he, along with other experts, explored the ocean plastic pollution
problem. The expeditions were captured and shared through a digital documentary
series.
In October 2019, SCJ entered into a partnership with Earthwatch Europe6 to sponsor
the latter's Plastic Rivers program aimed at reducing plastic pollution in rivers in the UK. Their grant would help in the development of an online, on-the-go plastic footprint
calculator, where people would be able to calculate their impact on the environment
and find out how to reduce it. As part of the partnership, SCJ would also sponsor
community events to raise awareness on plastic waste and clean up pollution caused
by plastic.
In January 2020, SCJ teamed up with American baseball team Milwaukee Brewers
to recycle more than 1 million plastic cups used each season at the team's ballpark
into product bottles. Starting with the 2020 season, attendees at Miller Park would be
able to discard plastic cups branded with the SCJ logo into designated receptacles for
recycling. SCJ would collect the cups and use the recycled plastic in its Scrubbing
Bubbles bottles. The partnership would continue throughout the 2020 season, with
additional promotions including organized "Clean Up Days" and philanthropic
contributions. In addition, for each save recorded by a Milwaukee Brewers pitcher,
they would make a donation to the "Players for the Planet" initiative, which was
working to reduce ocean plastic.
Monetizin g Waste
In October 2018, SCJ partnered with social enterprise Plastic Bank to manage ocean
plastic waste by improving recycling infrastructure across Indonesia while addressing
the challenges of poverty in impoverished communities.
Plastic Bank launched the concept of 'Social Plastic' in Haiti in 2015, two years
after its co-founder, David Katz (Katz), had the idea that if waste plastic was monetized,
it could tackle the twin problem of global poverty and ocean pollution at the same
time. The focus was on paying collectors of waste straws, lids, and bottles a living
wage, while the recycled plastic was sold to 75 brand partners, including Lush and
Henkel. Between 2015 and early 2020, Plastic Bank had recovered and recycled more
than 6,000 tons of ocean-bound plastic and improved the lives of more than 4,300
families living in poverty in Haiti, the Philippines, Indonesia, and later in Egypt.xiii
As per SCJ's partnership with Plastic Planet, local waste collectors would bring
the plastic they collected to any recycling center where it could be exchanged for
digital tokens. Using Blockchain technology, they could then use the tokens to buy
the goods and services they needed. The collected plastic would then be recycled and
sold into the market as Social Plastic (see Exhibit VII). SCJ chose to start this initiative
in Indonesia because the country not only had the world's highest levels of marine
biodiversity but also high levels of plastic pollution in its oceans. SCJ had opened
nine new plastic recycling centers in Indonesia by the end of 2019.
The partnership also led to the development of a "Social Plastic Ecosystem" that
created jobs at the recycling centers and collection points for poor communities.
According to analysts, nearly 28 million people lived below the poverty line in Indonesia
and could greatly benefit from a program of this scale. Each recycling center could
manage about 100 metric tons of plastic a year, thereby providing economic
opportunities for hundreds of local residents living in poverty. SCJ was credited with
being the first Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) company to scale a program of this
kind in Indonesia that benefitted a wide range of socioeconomic demographics,
including local residents living below the poverty level, while reducing ocean plastic
waste.
In 2019, SCJ expanded its partnership with Plastic Bank with plans to establish a
total of 509 plastic collection points spanning five countries-Indonesia, Thailand,
the Philippines, Vietnam, and Brazil. These plastic collection points were expected to
collect 30,000 metric tons of plastic waste over a period of three years. According to
the company, this was the equivalent of preventing approximately 1.5 billion plastic
bottles from entering waterways and the ocean. According to a 2015 report by Ocean
Conservancy and the McKinsey Center for Business and Environment, five Asian
countries-China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand-accounted for
more than 55% of the plastic waste leaking into the ocean. According to experts,
increasing collection rates to an average of about 80% across these countries would
reduce plastic waste leakage into the ocean by approximately 23%. According to Katz,
"Together with SC Johnson, we now have the ability to help close the loop and advance
a circular economy while developing infrastructure in the areas where it is needed the
most. We are eager to expand exponentially and maximize our efforts in cleaning the
environment, prohibiting waste from entering the ocean and alleviating poverty
simultaneously. There is no better partner than Fisk and SC Johnson-other CEOs
should take note."xiv
Reusing Social Plastic
In February 2019, as part of its commitment to make all its plastic packaging recyclable,
reusable, or compostable by 2025, SCJ announced that it would launch the industry's
first plastic bottle made entirely from recycled ocean plastic to pack its home cleaning
brands Windex Original and Windex Vinegar. SCJ purchased Social Plastic from Plastic
Bank at a premium and incorporated it into its Windex brand in both the US and
Canada.
Beginning February 2020, Windex Plastic bottles made from recycled ocean plastic
waste were available in the North American market with eight million units set to be
supplied to retailers such as Walmart and Target. "With over 5 trillion pieces of plastic
debris in the ocean, conditions are continuing to get worse and worse. The Windex
bottle is just one of the many ways we are not only providing solutions to combat
ocean pollution but taking action to make these solutions a reality."xv
Raisin g Awareness Through Social Media
In order to raise awareness about the impacts of plastic ocean waste, Fisk actively
posted news and information about plastic waste on various social media networks
such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn (see Exhibit VIII).
In March 2019, SCJ launched a social media campaign to raise awareness on the
issue of ocean plastic pollution. It challenged social media users around the globe to
tweet in support of reducing ocean plastic using the hashtags #SocialPlastic or
#SCJRecycles. The company promised to fund an additional recycling center in
Indonesia if more than 20,000 posts that included the hashtags were tweeted or
retweeted by Twitter users.
The campaign engaged more than 150 million people. Following more than 20,000
tweets and retweets from people sharing their support for reducing ocean plastic, SCJ
kept its promise and opened the ninth recycling center in Bali, Indonesia. "The energy
and dialog that we have seen since announcing this challenge has been overwhelming.
We are proud to help inspire so many new environmental champions, and spur
conversation about the importance of recycling and the impact of social plastic,"xvi
said Kelly Semrau, Senior Vice-President - Global Corporate Affairs, Communication,
and Sustainability at SCJ.
Challenges Ahead
According to Fisk, one of the biggest challenges facing SCJ in its fight against ocean
plastic waste would be to change consumer behavior around plastic usage and sell
some of its sustainable packaging and product options.
He said it was hard to break the single-use plastic habit among consumers as
products made of single use plastic were convenient and easy to use. Fisk pointed out
that SCJ had been trying to sell concentrated refills since 2011 using several different
strategies but had found limited success as most consumers were not ready to switch
to refilling. "Those trigger bottles can be reused many times and it's not a big behavior
change to buy a small concentrate, pour it in the trigger bottle, and fill it with water.
But people have just not been aware enough of the plastic waste problem to go through
that slight change of behavior."xvii Another challenge was closing the loop by getting
people to reuse and recycle, as well as ensuring investment in infrastructure to ensure
that plastic waste went back into the product stream.
Though the company had switched its Windex bottles to 100% Post-Consumer
Recycled (PCR) alternatives, some experts felt that the transition would not be easy
as PCR plastic did not always have the physical properties needed to safely hold
chemical-based cleaning products. Moreover, increasing PCR in packaging could affect
its color, making it look less appealing in stores. "Our marketing team are worried
that if our product doesn't look absolutely pristine on-shelf, people won't buy it. In
my mind, I would love this discoloration to be more of a badge of honor and a selling
point. That does not work so well today, but looking ahead, I think we will be able to
do that as we incorporate more PCR content, because people will be thinking about
the plastic waste issue in ways they haven't before,"xviii said Fisk.
Fisk also stressed the need for additional government regulations that would require
manufacturers to change their production practices and help incentivize the
incorporation of recycled materials into products. According to him, "When we put
ocean plastic into our Windex bottles, it is a 30% cost premium to do that, and that's
over and above the cost premium we pay to put 100% recycled plastic in our Windex
bottles to begin with. We were willing to do that kind of thing. Other companies may
not be so willing to do it. If we are going to really get over the hump, we need greater
regulation."xix
Scaling up the company's efforts to reduce ocean pollution alongside making
improvements in waste management was another big challenge for the company, felt
some analysts. According to Fisk, collaboration would be key to combating ocean
plastic waste due to the complex and highly fragmented nature of the global plastics
value chain (see Exhibit IX). "Plastic waste is the single biggest environmental issue
we have to address as a company, but we cannot do it alone. Business, government
and civil society need to come together to solve the problem."xx
As outlined in the company's 2018-19 Sustainability Report, SCJ was on track to
meet its 2025 commitments to help reduce plastic waste and boost recycling. The
company revealed that it had achieved a 1.7-million-kilogram reduction in the amount
of plastic used in its primary packaging. SC increased its recyclable, reusable, or
compostable plastic packaging from 90% in 2018, to 94% in 2019 (see Exhibit X and
Exhibit XI). It was also planning to expand the ocean plastic containers for use with
more of its products. "We were at a tipping point in the global plastic waste crisis.
Governments are making plans to take action, consumers are vowing to change
behaviours, and businesses are stepping up to help. These are all important steps
forward to solving this critical issue. While there are no easy solutions, the progress
I have seen first-hand around the world gives me reason for hope,"xxi said Fisk.
Analysts said that given its global scale and the advantage of being private, SCJ
could play a crucial role in driving significant changes and eliminating plastic waste
from oceans. Going forward, the question before Fisk was what more the company
could do to address the problem. What kind of strategy might work better in solving
the problem of ocean plastic and what was the best way to take all the stakeholders
along?
End Notes