Amazon has reinstated Pepsi True’s page on its website, following its removal after it was flooded with negative reviews from environmentalist groups.
The campaign was led by activist group SumOfUs.org and the Rainforest Action Network and coincided with the launch of Pepsi’s stevia drink Pepsi True which is sold exclusively on Amazon.
The group inundated Pepsi True’s page with hundreds of 1-star negative reviews, criticising the company for its ‘failure’ to commit to more sustainable palm oil policies.
Until reinstatement, searches for Pepsi True redirected users to Amazon’s homepage and the product appeared to have vanished from its catalogue entirely, effectively shutting its distribution channel.
“Pepsi can’t hide from the destruction that it refuses to eliminate from its supply chain” said Kaytee Riek, campaign director at SumOfUs. “It could rise above its competitors and do the right thing, but instead it has relied on half measures.”
In May, Pepsi pledged it would only use palm oil from suppliers who are members of the Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) by 2016, but environmentalist groups argue its policies don’t go far enough to guarantee its supply chain will be free from deforestation and social conflict.
Sum of Us said it would continue to campaign until Pepsi takes a more ‘responsible’ approach.
Earlier this year, some of the world’s largest palm oil producers and suppliers, including Nestlé, Mars, Kellogg’s, Unilever, P&G and Ferrero pledged to use only conflict-free, sustainable palm oil, and work towards zero-deforestation policies. More than 223,000 people from around the world have signed onto a petition by SumOfUs.org urging PepsiCo to adopt more sustainable palm oil policies.
SumOfUs.org is a global movement of consumers, investors, and workers all around the world, standing together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable and just path for our global economy.
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