Earth Island Institute has reached a settlement with Danone North America in its ongoing litigation against major food, beverage, and consumer goods companies for its role in the global plastic pollution crisis. The lawsuit, filed in 2020 in California state court, alleges that companies should be held accountable for the plastic waste they produce, much of which ends up polluting oceans, waterways, and communities. The case is currently scheduled to go to trial in May 2026.
As part of the resolution, Danone has agreed to support initiatives and efforts to reduce plastic waste in California. Additionally, Danone has agreed to be accountable for the plastic waste they produce by adding an educational statement to its website informing consumers of the current limitations of plastic recycling. The statement also points consumers to the website for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data, which reads:
“According to EPA data from 2018, approximately 29.1% of PET bottles & jars were recycled across the United States. In 2018, the EPA opined that 99% of all plastic is made from petrochemicals derived from fossil fuels. It acknowledged that existing forms of mechanical recycling diminish the quality of plastic with each recycling attempt, although work is being done to try to find ways in which recycling might restore this quality. Unrecycled plastic can end up in landfills, waterways, and the ocean.”
The statement further notes that according to the EPA, a lot of the plastic bottles consumers put in the recycling bin never actually get recycled, but end up as garbage on the land and in the waterways.
Tyson Redenbarger, a partner with Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, Earth Island’s counsel, stated, “Earth Island is pleased to reach an amicable resolution with Danone, and for Danone’s agreement to support initiatives and efforts to reduce plastic waste in California.”
Earth Island has filed this case in its own right and on behalf of Plastic Pollution Coalition,
the International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP), a group fighting to protect dolphins, whales, and the ocean environment from plastic pollution; and Shark Stewards, a group that records observations of the ubiquitous presence of plastics that are trashing our shorelines and ocean environments, impacting fish and other marine life.
