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Environment
Ecology Claims May Just Look Good on Paper
By Randolph B. Smith
09/13/1990
The Wall Street Journal
PAGE B1
Makers of paper products
from grocery sacks to disposable diapers are marketing their goods with
claims that they are environmentally superior to plastic.
But paper companies
may soon find themselves in trouble with federal regulators for making
much the same false or misleading claims as their rivals in the plastic
industry. Already, the Federal Trade Commission is investigating a proliferation
of environmental claims for various paper products, and several state
officials say they also are concerned.
The main point of
contention is paper makers' statements that their products are biodegradable.
Among the companies making such claims are Stone Container Corp., which
says its paper bags are "naturally degradable" and "environmentally responsible";
Burger King Corp., which labels all its fast-food packaging as biodegradable;
and Weyerhaeuser Co., which makes the same claim for its Nature's Care
disposable diapers.
These companies say
their claims are accurate and confer an important marketing advantage
because the public believes that paper is "natural" and, therefore, safer
for the planet. But federal and state officials say such claims may only
foster misperceptions about the differences between paper and plastic.
"A lot of the claims
made for degradable plastic are just as misleading when applied to paper
products," says Barry Cutler, director of the Federal Trade Commission's
Bureau of Consumer Protection.
The FTC is investigating
claims for a variety of paper products, Mr. Cutler says. The agency's
rules preclude the agency from disclosing specific investigations before
it announces charges. But Stone Container says the FTC has asked for documentation
of claims made in a 30-second TV spot that ran in some markets earlier
this year. In the ad, which the company says was a test campaign that
is now being evaluated, Stone said its bags are degradable and recyclable.
The ad was "very
effective. More people were asking for paper bags," a Stone Container
spokesman says.
Environmental groups
say degradability claims are irrelevant, given that nearly 90% of waste
is disposed of in landfills or incinerators. "In a landfill environment,
paper is no more degradable than plastic," says Richard Denison, senior
scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund, a Washington, D.C., advocacy
group.
Supermarket chains
and bag makers are also widely promoting paper grocery sacks as "100%
recyclable." But environmental groups say even that claim tends to mislead
because only 10% to 15% of paper bags are currently being recycled, according
to Franklin Associates Ltd., a Prairie Village, Kan., solid-waste consultant.
(Franklin says that rate far exceeds the 1% to 3% estimate for plastic
bags.)
Advertising watchdogs
are pursuing paper makers partly because of loud complaints that the plastics
industry has been singled out for attack while claims for paper go unchallenged.
"We're asking for a level playing field," says George Makrauer , chairman
of the Degradable Plastics Council, an industry group.
So far, federal and
state investigations have targeted degradability claims for plastic products,
such as First Brands Corp.'s Glad trash bags. Attorneys general in seven
states have sued Mobil Corp.'s Mobil Chemical Co. unit for alleged false
advertising of Hefty trash bags. Bowing to public pressure, Mobil is removing
all environmental claims, and First Brands is modifying its claims.
Much is at stake
in the paper-plastic marketing war. In 10 years, plastic has won about
half the market for grocery sacks and sales of about $330 million a year,
according to industry estimates. Paper grocery bags, with annual sales
of $1.2 billion, have steadily lost market share as supermarkets have
pushed plastic bags, which cost less than half as much.
The paper industry
has fought back with a media campaign asserting that "paper bags degrade
quickly and harmlessly in the environment," and urging consumers to demand:
"Package Mine In Paper, Please." The campaign has halted the decline of
paper sacks, both sides say. Mr. Makrauer of the plastics council says
plastic bag sales have dropped 10% to 15% in the past year.
The paper industry
now is taking the offensive, launching new products in markets dominated
by plastic. Stone Container, a Chicago company that has 40% of the paper
grocery sack market, recently began selling paper lawn and trash bags
that it says are "all natural" and "biodegradable." Its new line of trash
compactor bags have a plastic lining wrapped in "environmentally safe"
paper.
The Stone Container
spokesman says the claims are accurate because tests show paper "degrades
completely" in water and when composted. "We'll be the first to admit
that nothing degrades in landfills," he says.
But Mr. Denison of
the Environmental Defense Fund says the labels are "totally misleading."
The lawn and refuse bags are intended for composting, but the label also
specifies "general trash," which would be burned or dumped in landfills.
The marketing battle
isn't limited to bags. Keyes Fibre Co. is increasing the prominence of
"100% biodegradable" labels on Chinet paper plates because many people
"thought they were plastic," says a spokesman. Weyerhaeuser launched its
"88% biodegradable" disposable diapers at the request of retailers clamoring
for an environmentally friendly product.
Some bag makers and
grocery chains are fighting degradability claims and pushing recycling
to keep trash out of landfills.
Duro Bag Manufacturing
Co. in Ludlow, Ky., sells "100% recycled" grocery sacks made from used
corrugated boxes. Stop & Shop Supermarket Co., based in Quincy, Mass.,
is distributing fliers telling consumers that degradability isn't the
answer. The chain is testing a new Stone Container sack containing 20%
recycled newspapers, but is also defending its heavy use of plastic bags.
Says a spokeswoman: "We can't determine based on good science that paper
or plastic is superior."
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