YUM! Brands to Phase Out Polystyrene Foam Packaging

YUM! Brands, Inc., one of the world’s largest quick service restaurant companies, with global brands including KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, has agreed to end its use of expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam packaging globally by 2022, following engagement with As You Sow.

Rarely recycled, EPS foam, used in beverage cups and takeout containers, is a frequent component of beach litter, breaking down into indigestible pellets, which animals mistake for food, sometimes resulting in impairment and death.

EPS foam is used mostly for side dish takeout containers in about 40 of YUM!’s global markets, including 4,000 U.S. locations and 2,700 non-U.S. locations. Phase out of EPS foam will eliminate the use of at least 100 million foam containers per year, according to the company.

A shareholder proposal filed by As You Sow urging the company to phase out EPS foam among other actions to improve packaging sustainability was supported by 33 percent of shares voted with a share value of $7 billion in 2019. As You Sow refiled its shareholder proposal for 2020 but has withdrawn the proposal in recognition of the company’s commitment.

“We congratulate YUM! management for this leadership action in removing EPS foam from its global packaging stream,” said Conrad MacKerron, senior vice president at As You Sow, who specializes in waste and recycling issues, in a statement. “This action could significantly reduce the amount of single-use packaging that ends up as littered waste, especially in developing economies where YUM! does substantial business.” YUM’s KFC brand alone has more than 5,000 outlets in 1,100 cities in China.

In 2018, McDonald’s Corp. agreed to phase out foam containers at the end of 2018 after a shareholder vote and engagement with As You Sow, eliminating the use of 1 billion cups annually. A month later, Dunkin’ Brands followed suit, setting a 2020 phase-out date for foam cups following McDonald’s commitment, which will eliminate use of another billion cups annually.

Polystyrene has been widely used for single-use containers across the world for decades, but in recent years, its negative environmental and health profile has led major companies to drop it. In 2017, a report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation New Plastics Economy Project, endorsed by major brands including Coca-Cola Co., Danone, Mars, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble and Unilever, recommended phase out of expanded polystyrene, calling it a substance of concern and stating that its replacement would enhance the economics of recycling.