Boston, July 14, 2026 – After negotiating with Green Century, Campbell’s Company, the makers of Campbell’s soup, Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers and Cape Cod potato chips, has committed to disclose how much plastic packaging it uses and make it easier to understand how much of its packaging is actually recyclable.
“We are pleased that Campbell’s will provide this much-needed information,” said Leslie Samuelrich, president of Green Century. “Investors have been in the dark for too long about how much plastic the company uses.”
Plastics’ hefty price tag
A Duke University study found that plastics cost the United States up to $1.1 trillion a year in detrimental economic, environmental and health impacts. Plastic food packaging is the biggest source of coastal pollution worldwide and threatens human health. Snack food bags such as those containing Campbell’s Goldfish crackers and Snyder’s of Hanover pretzels are rarely recycled and because people often eat snack food on the go, this type of packaging often becomes pollution.
What does it mean to be recyclable?
Many people hope that we can recycle our way out of this problem. Unfortunately, a lot of the plastic we use is not recyclable because of the type or size of plastic. Even plastic that is recyclable can only be recycled a few times. As a result, only about 9% of plastic waste globally gets recycled.
Green Century approached Campbell’s this year about its lack of disclosure about how much plastic it uses and unclear disclosure about its packaging’s recyclability. The company discloses that 95% of its packaging is “recyclable or industrially compostable designs and materials.” The company means that 95% of its packaging is designed to be recyclable as opposed to being recyclable in practice.
According to the Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guides, which help marketers avoid making environmental claims that mislead consumers, an item is recyclable if it can be “collected, separated, or otherwise recovered from the waste stream through an established recycling program for reuse or use in manufacturing or assembling another item.” In other words, a community must accept it for recycling collection and sufficient end markets must exist to turn the material into recycled plastic. That is almost never the case for plastic wrappers.
Plastic in the microwave?
Green Century was also concerned about whether Campbell’s was adequately managing the health risks of plastic food packaging, especially because the company sells food in plastic packaging designated “microwavable.” Scientists caution consumers against microwaving plastic because heating plastic can cause the container to shed microplastics and toxic chemicals.
Scientists have identified thousands of chemical additives used in plastics as toxic, and haven’t studied thousand more potentially toxic chemical additives. Some experts say that U.S. regulations don’t do enough to ensure that plastic food packaging doesn’t expose Americans to toxic chemicals and microplastics. These lax rules mean that companies need to go above and beyond regulatory requirements to ensure that their packaging doesn’t contribute to increased risk of negative health outcomes such as cancer or behavioral or reproductive problems.
“We applaud Campbell’s newfound commitment to transparency about its plastic use.” said Frances Fairhead-Stanova, shareholder advocate at Green Century. “We’re now encouraging the company to take further action. A good next step would be no longer selling food in plastic microwave packaging.”
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