Philadelphia lawsuit alleges companies deceived consumers over recyclability of plastic products

The week of Sept. 22, the city of Philadelphia filed a lawsuit against bakery product manufacturing company Bimbo Bakeries and S.C. Johnson & Son, alleging the companies have misled consumers by “deceptively” advertising that their single-use plastic bags are recyclable.

According to the lawsuit, published Sept. 24, Bimbo Bakeries and S.C. Johnson & Son print the chasing arrows symbol on their packaging to mislead consumers into thinking their single-use plastic film products and packaging are recyclable.

“Each time a well-intentioned Philadelphia consumer has put a plastic bag in her municipal recycling bin, it has not been recycled—rather, unbeknownst to her, it has gone to a waste facility,” the filing reads.

On some products, packaging could indicate the plastic film can be brought to a local supermarket for recycling, while others merely include the chasing arrows recycling symbol, the city says in a statement released last week. It notes that both labeling mechanisms are misleading because “plastic bags are not recyclable in the way that ordinary consumers expect when something is labeled as recyclable.”

“Most consumers believe that is not true with respect to plastic film products or packaging, which cannot be reprocessed through Philadelphia’s municipal recycling system and overwhelmingly end up going to waste when consumers try to recycle them—even when consumers try to recycle them through store drop-off programs,” the city says.

According to Philadelphia officials, because of the high rate of consumption of Bimbo Bakeries and S.C. Johnson & Son products combined with confusion around the proper method of disposal, plastic film produced by these companies has become “a very common contaminant” in the Philadelphia recycling system.

“The presence of nonrecyclable packaging at Philadelphia’s recycling plants reduces efficiency and causes damage to city infrastructure, leading to greater operational costs and increased waste,” the city continues. “Meanwhile, the companies gain profit by deceiving consumers who believe that they are shopping consciously to reduce waste.”

Through the lawsuit, the city is seeking relief in the form of an injunction ordering the companies to revise their marketing for transparency around the recyclability of their plastic packaging. Additionally, the city is seeking remedies, including civil penalties consistent with Philadelphia’s Consumer Protection Ordinance, and compensatory damages to cover costs and losses accrued by the city due to what it calls the companies’ “deceptive conduct.”

“Philadelphia residents want clean and litter-free streets, and many are doing their part to reduce waste by recycling and shopping sustainably,” Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker. “Companies that label their products with the goal of implying their product is recyclable when it isn’t are not just breaking the law, but they are violating public trust and contributing to waste.”