Green Century Pushes Back on Food Waste Proposal with Amazon*
Media contact: Jared Fernandez, jfernandez@greencentury.com, Green Century Capital Management, 617-482-0800
BOSTON, March 1, 2018 – Green Century Capital Management has asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to reject a formal request from Amazon.com, Inc. to dismiss a shareholder proposal which addresses the crucial issue of food waste.
Forty percent of all food grown in the United States is wasted, responsible for 4.5 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions nationwide and a leading contributor to global climate change.
Green Century submitted a shareholder proposal in December asking Amazon to meaningfully assess and report on its operational strategies to minimize food waste. Amazon has refused to act on that proposal. The Company also has formally requested that the SEC let it exclude the proposal from the proxy ballot to be delivered to Amazon’s shareholders before the company’s next shareholder meeting in May.
By submitting its challenge to the SEC, Amazon is signaling that shutting down investor inquiry is more beneficial to the Company than notifying shareholders about potential inefficiencies in its operations — some of which have wide-ranging societal effects. Green Century has filed a counter-argument with the SEC, saying shareholders have a right to know.
“Reducing food waste is one of the lowest hanging fruits in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and combating climate change,” said Leslie Samuelrich, President of Green Century. “Corporations such as Kroger,* Safeway,* Publix* and Target* have all taken steps to increase transparency on this issue. Failure to meaningfully address food waste demonstrates how out of step Amazon is with its shareholders and other responsible food retailers.”
Green Century worked with Whole Foods Market last year on a similar proposal, which garnered 30.4% of investor support. Amazon has yet to publicly disclose how much food waste it generates annually or what strategy the Company employs to minimize the creation of food waste.
“Amazon is rightfully known as a pioneer in operational and supply chain efficiency. We need Amazon to apply that efficiency to its retail food business, for the sake of our society and environment,” said Samuelrich. “Amazon has ambitious goals in the retail food industry, and failure to address food waste early on represents a lost opportunity to become a leader, develop sound policies to ensure growth, and satisfy shareholders.”
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About Green Century Capital Management
Green Century Capital Management is the investment advisor to the Green Century Funds and offers three environmentally and socially responsible funds, the Green Century International Index Fund, the Green Century Equity Fund, and the Green Century Balanced Fund. Green Century works to curb climate change through fossil fuel free investing, reinvestment in sustainable companies, and advocating with companies to improve their environmental policies and supply chains.
*As of December 31, 2017, Target Corporation comprised 0.72%, 0.00% and 0.00% of the Green Century Balanced Fund, the Green Century Equity Fund, and the Green Century International Index Fund, respectively. No other securities mentioned were held in any of the portfolios of the Green Century Funds as of the same date. References to specific securities, which will change due to ongoing management of the Funds, should not be construed as a recommendation by the Funds, their administrator, or their distributor.
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This information has been prepared from sources believed reliable. The views expressed are as of the date of this writing and are those of the Advisor to the Green Century Funds.
The Green Century Funds are distributed by UMB Distribution Services, LLC. 3/18
