Reference no: EM132260764

The McDonald's Polystyrene Case

For years, McDonald's, like most other quick-food chains, used polystyrene containers-the famous Big Mac clamshell-for its hamburgers. Because of its size and dominant position, McDonald's became the target of the Environmental Defense Fund, which claimed that making polystyrene packaging created toxic fumes, that it took up too much landfill, and that it took too long to biodegrade. In addition, a lobby called the Pro-Environment

Packaging Council, funded by paper companies, started targeting schools with a campaign about the adverse impact of polystyrene products. McDonald's was soon faced with what Forbes magazine called a "children's crusade," which involved a Send-It-Back campaign, letters written by classes of children, and a threatened boycott.2 On November 2, 1990, McDonald's announced that within 60 days it would phase out its polystyrene clams and replace them with coated paperboard. But who informed grade school children of the facts that led to their uncharacteristic assertiveness on this issue, and did they get the whole story? McDonald's move to paper products was probably a good business decision, given the circumstances and the pressure it was under. Was it the best environmental decision? Was it a socially responsible action? Was it morally obliged to take the action it did?