WASHINGTON, D.C. — Investment group Investor Environmental Health Network has announced that McDonald's Corp. has agreed to formally survey and promote best practices in pesticide use reduction within its American potato supply chain in response to shareholder concerns.
The agreement led to the withdrawal of a shareholder resolution filed by the Bard College Endowment, Newground Social Investment, and the AFL-CIO Reserve Fund. This was the first shareholder resolution focused on environmental and worker health issues ever to be filed by a college or university endowment.
Through this agreement, McDonald's, the largest buyer of potatoes in the United States, has committed to the following:
- Survey its current U.S. potato suppliers
- Compile a list of best practices in pesticide reduction that will be recommended to the company's global suppliers through the company's Global Potato Board
- Communicate findings related to best practices to shareholders and in the company's annual corporate social responsibility (CSR) report
The agreement was developed in collaboration between shareholders and McDonald's, with support from the Investor Environmental Health Network.
