After Years of Pressure, Environmental Justice Organizations Celebrate Progress but Warn Dollar Store is Still Short of Protective Policies
After Years of Pressure, Environmental Justice Organizations Celebrate Progress but Warn Dollar Store is Still Short of Protective Policies
SAN DIEGO, May 6, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- One of the nation’s largest discount retail chains, Dollar Tree Stores Inc., which also owns Family Dollar Stores, has taken an important step toward increased health and safety for customers by joining the Chemical Footprint Project, a bench-marking metric that helps companies assess their market risk from toxic chemicals and understand the opportunities for safer chemicals in its supply chain. This decision may carry important implications for public health, consumer rights, and Dollar Tree’s extensive supply chain, as the discount retailer is a Fortune 200 company which operates over 15,000 stores across the United States and Canada. Grassroots justice groups from person-of-color and poor communities dependent on dollar stores cheered this step toward quantifying toxic chemical risks—but also warned it falls short of a more complete, transparent and protective toxic chemical policy, which should include public disclosures and specific goals to reduce hazardous chemical use. They were joined by national public health and product safety organizations in celebrating this progress.
“Poor families and average Americans, many of whom shop at Dollar Tree for food and products, have good reason to celebrate Dollar Tree’s decision to join the Chemical Footprint Project,” said Jose Bravo, National Coordinator of the Campaign for Healthier Solutions. “While this is an important step toward less cancer, fewer learning and developmental disabilities, and healthier communities, we’ll continue to encourage Dollar Tree to develop a complete toxic chemicals policy which is fully transparent to the public, and to stock fresh and healthy foods so that people in food-deprived areas have choices.”
“Everyone has a role to play in preventing Breast Cancer,” said Janet Nudelman, Director of Program and Policy at Breast Cancer Prevention Partners. “Thank you Dollar Tree Stores, Inc. for becoming a part of the solution—and raising a new high bar for the nation’s other discount retailers—by joining the Chemical Footprint Project.”
The Campaign for Healthier Solutions has been putting pressure on Dollar Tree to eliminate toxic chemicals from its supply chain since early 2015 with the release of product testing results which found high levels of heavy metals in children’s costume jewelry, phthalates in silly straws, and other toxic chemicals at potentially dangerous levels.
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SOURCE Campaign for Healthier Solutions
