Sonoma, Calif. — Processors may be facing more questions about details of their products by their customers in the near future, a consultant warned members at the Western Plastics Association's annual conference in Sonoma in May.
Tony Kingsbury talked about “chemicals of concern” and wondered if their regulation is backed by science or sensationalism. Kingsbury is founder and president of the sustainability consultancy TKingsbury LLC of San Ramon, Calif.
In today's transparent environment, “opponents will use any means to remove products they don't like,” he said. Nonprofit nongovernmental advocacy organizations “will play by their own rules, [and] California regulators are playing fast and loose.”
Plastics industry players need to “work with associations to fight bad science,” Kingsbury noted. “Don't wait for it to come to you. Don't wait for it to hit you and your products directly.”
His advice: “Understand what ingredients are in all the products you use.”
Major retailers such as Unilever NV, Target Corp., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Clorox Co. are “now asking what goes in the package,” Kingsbury said. “Next, they will ask what is the package made of.”