General Mills shareholders lose vote to cut plastic packaging in Green Century proposal 

F&B giant General Mills has rejected a proposal by Green Century Capital Management to investigate and report on how it can tackle its packaging footprint by reducing plastic usage. Forty percent of shareholders voted in favor of the motion but were beaten by a majority who say the current targets and reporting on recyclability are sufficient.

Despite losing the vote, Green Century says it sees the 40% support as a positive development. In 2022, a similar vote passed by 56% but the report that was promised by the vote was never produced.  

Annie Sanders, Green Century’s director of shareholder advocacy, tells Packaging Insights: “The bottom line is that General Mills’ heavy emphasis on plastic recyclability over plastic reduction fundamentally undermines its ability to mitigate rising regulatory, legal and reputational risks. General Mills should take immediate action to reduce its plastic use.” 

In a statement before the vote, General Mills said the move was unnecessary because it has already pledged to release annual disclosures on its path to using 100% recyclable or reusable packaging by 2030. In its 2023 release, the company claimed it already achieved 93% against this benchmark, and only 11% of its packaging was plastic. 

However, Sanders says the large minority in favor of the vote also shows that many of the company’s shareholders recognize the importance of reduction efforts. 

“The strong 40% vote in support of Green Century’s plastic reduction proposal at General Mills was one of the highest votes on an environmental proposal in 2024 — only six other environmental proposals received over 40% of the vote,” she explains. 

“The fact that so many investors supported this proposal despite management’s opposition conveys a clear message that General Mills should remove misleading recycling claims and focus on reducing plastic packaging.” 

The call comes ahead of the final negotiation round for a UN Global Plastic Treaty next month in South Korea, where the “High Ambition Coalition” nations will debate petrochemical states over obligations to cut plastics production. 

“Recycling alone is an inadequate solution to the problem of plastic pollution — especially when companies falsely claim their plastic packaging is recyclable. General Mills’ heavy emphasis on plastic recyclability over plastic reduction is not only misleading and ineffective but undermines its ability to focus on what works: reducing plastic packaging,” Sanders continues.

“We hope the company heeds this call from investors to remove misleading recycling labeling and restructure its plastic packaging sustainability efforts to focus on cutting plastic.”