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We’ve all most likely seen them, ads from company polluters that sound like they may have been written by an environmental safety group. This tactic, known as greenwashing, has turn out to be all the trend with among the largest polluters to cowl up their poisoning of the setting and hurt to communities. And Smithfield Meals is a primary instance, pushing an aggressive greenwashing marketing campaign so that buyers will overlook that it is without doubt one of the largest industrial polluters in the USA.
What Smithfield is admittedly doing is doubling down on its legacy of utmost air pollution, as a result of its manufacturing unit farm biogas scheme basically is determined by the worst components of the way it has chosen to provide its pork merchandise on a budget.
As a substitute of cleansing up its act by truly making its merchandise with out destroying the setting and well being of these unfortunate sufficient to stay close to its vegetation and the manufacturing unit farms that increase its pigs, Smithfield is investing in slick tag strains and doubling down on its devastating manufacturing unit farm mannequin. Day in and time out Smithfield will get wealthy whereas spewing harmful pollution into our water, air, and soil. And now Smithfield is partnering with fossil gasoline firms to push manufacturing unit farm “biogas” schemes to monetize its deliberate mismanagement of the practically unfathomable quantities of waste it produces 12 months after 12 months. Manufacturing facility farm biogas is a false answer that expands and entrenches the worst features of mega-factory farms and the soiled pure gasoline trade. However all through Smithfield’s advertising and marketing — on its web sites, social media accounts, and elsewhere—it tells customers that its pork merchandise are environmentally pleasant and that it’s a sustainability chief and local weather champion. It’s grade-A greenwashing at its best.
Not solely is that this deception unhealthy for customers and household farmers, it’s unlawful. That’s why we’re calling on federal regulators to carry Smithfield accountable and put a cease to its false and deceptive promoting.
Smithfield Is One of many Greatest Industrial Polluters, Making a Mockery of Its Sustainability Claims
Smithfield is without doubt one of the most dangerous industrial polluters in the USA. It constantly places income over individuals and the setting, with manufacturing unit farms and processing services all through the nation that rack up dozens of environmental violations yearly. This is the reason Smithfield has been hit with tens of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in damages as impacted communities have efficiently taken the mega-polluter to courtroom for inflicting circumstances that make their properties practically unlivable. The federal judges didn’t mince their phrases, recognizing that “interlocking dysfunctions” are attribute of how Smithfield produces its merchandise, and that the corporate willfully and wantonly harmed its neighbors to maximise income.
Smithfield’s Claims About Manufacturing facility Farm Biogas Are Quintessential Company Greenwashing
Smithfield’s newest scheme to cover its hurt to public well being and the local weather is its promotion of anaerobic digesters to provide so-called “biogas.” These digesters are tanks or lagoons that create an oxygen-free setting the place microbes eat a part of Smithfield’s manure and emit a combination of gases, largely methane and carbon dioxide, that the digester captures. This manufacturing unit farm biogas can then be refined and burned similar to fossil pure gasoline. Removed from displaying a “longstanding dedication to sustainability,” as Smithfield claims, constructing new manufacturing unit farms and entrenching its irresponsible waste mismanagement to extract biogas solely perpetuates the myriad harms brought on by its manufacturing unit farm manufacturing mannequin. The truth is, Smithfield’s digesters could make its waste much more dangerous to waterways than what it began with.
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What Smithfield is admittedly doing is doubling down on its legacy of utmost air pollution, as a result of its manufacturing unit farm biogas scheme basically is determined by the worst components of the way it has chosen to provide its pork merchandise on a budget. Smithfield promotes digesters as lowering its methane emissions and producing “renewable” vitality, however fails to say that this methane is the direct results of Smithfield’s most popular waste administration observe, the place it liquifies huge portions of manure and shops it cheaply in rudimentary “lagoons” (pictured within the picture above throughout a flood). In distinction, when animal manure breaks down naturally, on a pasture for instance, it doesn’t generate methane. Methane is a potent greenhouse gasoline that’s 90 occasions extra dangerous to the local weather than carbon dioxide over a 20-year time interval. Merely put, Smithfield misleadingly tells customers its pork is environmentally pleasant and that it’s a chief in sustainability as a result of it’s slapping a bandaid over the local weather destroying air pollution that it intentionally created within the first place. However we aren’t letting this deception go unanswered.
Taking the Smithfield Greenwashing Case to the Federal Commerce Fee
Meals & Water Watch and a coalition of environmental and sustainable, household farming teams* have filed a criticism with the Federal Commerce Fee (“FTC”) calling for enforcement of federal regulation towards Smithfield’s false and deceptive advertising and marketing. Beneath the FTC Act, firms are prohibited from selling their merchandise in any manner that’s more likely to mislead cheap customers. As our criticism makes clear, Smithfield’s sustainability advertising and marketing tells customers that its pork merchandise have environmental attributes which can be in stark distinction to the truth of how Smithfield does enterprise, duping them into shopping for its merchandise.
This unfair and unlawful observe not solely harms customers, but additionally harms really sustainable household farmers who make investments the time, effort, and cash into producing merchandise that truly match what conscientious customers anticipate. By illegally advertising and marketing its merchandise, Smithfield makes it practically not possible for these trustworthy producers to compete within the market, and for customers to inform the distinction.
Smithfield reportedly introduced in additional than $11 billion in income in 2020, so it might probably afford to wash up its act and transition away from the manufacturing unit farm mannequin that takes such an amazing toll on the setting and native communities. However as an alternative, it has opted for false options like manufacturing unit farm biogas so it might probably wring more cash out of its harmful and polluting manufacturing services. Smithfield’s merchandise aren’t “sustainable” or “environmentally pleasant,” and the FTC should act to carry this mega-polluter accountable for mendacity to the general public and its clients.
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