Coles faces shareholder pressure over plastic packaging

Nearly 200 shareholders in Australian supermarket group Coles are calling on the company to reduce plastic packaging across its own-brand products and provide greater transparency on how much plastic it uses.

A group of 190 investors has submitted a members' statement ahead of Coles' annual general meeting in November, highlighting concerns about the environmental and financial risks associated with continued reliance on plastic packaging.

The investors are urging Coles to establish stronger measures to reduce plastic use and to report publicly on its progress. The initiative is supported by the Australian Marine Conservation Society, ethical investment platform SIX and sustainable superannuation fund Future Super.

Woolworths sets a new transparency benchmark

The pressure on Coles follows a move by rival Woolworths to disclose its plastic intensity score for own-brand packaging for the first time. The metric measures the quantity of plastic packaging used relative to the number of products sold.

Woolworths reported that approximately 10 grams of plastic were used per product sold across its supermarket and Big W operations during the previous financial year. The disclosure makes Woolworths the first of Australia's two largest supermarket groups to publish such a figure.

ALDI previously reported a plastic intensity score of 15 grams per product in 2019, but has not continued to publish the metric in subsequent years. Coles has yet to publicly disclose a comparable figure.

Transparency linked to meaningful reduction

Environmental groups argue that measuring and publishing plastic use is a necessary first step towards reducing packaging volumes. The Australian Marine Conservation Society has repeatedly criticised major supermarkets for limited transparency around their plastic footprint.

Through its annual Unwrapped report, the organisation has assessed plastic use across Australia's largest supermarket chains, with transparency and reduction performance remaining key areas of concern.

The issue is particularly significant given the volume of plastic entering Australia's environment. According to figures cited by the organisation, around 250 kilograms of plastic leak into the environment every minute, while packaging accounts for approximately 60% of litter pollution.

Plastic packaging also seen as a financial risk

Investor concerns extend beyond environmental impacts. Excessive plastic use can expose retailers to regulatory costs, potential litigation, new packaging legislation and changing consumer expectations.

Investment groups argue that companies need clearer data to assess these risks and demonstrate how they intend to respond. For retailers operating large private-label portfolios, packaging strategies can therefore become an increasingly important part of environmental, social and governance reporting.

The shareholder action places additional pressure on Coles to demonstrate measurable progress before its November AGM. As competitors begin publishing more detailed information on packaging intensity, transparency around plastic use is likely to become an increasingly important benchmark for Australia's supermarket sector.