Tackling the plastic problem as investors

Ensuring companies are doing the right thing

My new shampoo looks like a bar of soap. It is made by a tiny company based in the UK, and there is no plastic packaging in sight.

It also means that I am no longer a customer of Unilever's Tresemmé, which, as a Unilever shareholder, is giving me the sort of anxiety that could accelerate hair loss. Plastic is a big problem for the consumer goods companies. They produce a lot of it, and it is increasingly unpopular with consumers. A recent survey of consumers across Europe found that 70% of respondents are actively taking steps to reduce their use of plastic packaging. For a sector where growth ambitions are mid- to low-single digits, that is a significant headwind. Opinion is also shifting in the US, with one sur...