• 💧 Alkaline88’s New, Old Boss
• 🧊 Stoli Files for Bankruptcy
• 😎 Operating Crew Aims To Cut DTC Costs
• 🪧 Breakthru’s Blip Of A Strike
• 📝 Investors Pen Letter For Transparency

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Any hope of containing the rapidly-escalating global plastic waste crisis seems to have melted down after international negotiations on a framework to curb pollution collapsed over the weekend.

Countries involved in discussions at the fifth U.N. Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee (INC-5) meeting in South Korea remained far apart after days of talks, with a group of over 100 nations seeking to put a cap on plastic manufacturing facing stern opposition from major petrochemical producers, like Saudi Arabia. In a bleak summation of the current situation, the meeting – tasked with creating a legally binding global treaty – concluded with promises of further talks and a document stuffed with “voluntary measures.”

Even as scrutiny on plastic waste increases, the tools and methods with which to enforce change have proven largely ineffectual. 

• In September, Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) was charged a meager $1.5 million in civil penalties for overstating the sustainability credentials of its signature K-Cup coffee pods. 
• In an ambitious bid to hold PepsiCo accountable for plastic pollution in the state’s Buffalo River, New York Attorney General Letitia James only earned herself a 19-page rebuke from the state Supreme Court admonishing her for pursuing a “naïve theory.” 
• On the West Coast, Los Angeles County is attempting to hold Pepsi and Coca-Cola to task for misleading consumers about the recyclability of its packaging and subsequent environmental impact, a case which, like James’ complaint, is based on the same fragile interpretation of “public nuisance.”

It’s sobering stuff for those watching in anguish as less than 10% of the 400 million tons of plastic waste created each year is recycled. More negotiations are in the works, but each delay represents essentially a doubling-down on the current negative trajectory. In the words of Panama’s delegation head Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez: “When we reconvene, the stakes will be higher.”

Go Deeper: SEC Slaps KDP Over Sustainability Claims

Alkaline88’s parent – The Alkaline Water Company – seemed to be all dried up when it delisted from the Nasdaq earlier this year, but now a familiar face has returned as it works to re-establish and rebuild on the OTC market. Co-founder, former president and CEO Richard “Ricky” Wright has returned to his post two years after initially retiring.

💼 Call it “unfinished business.” Wright said that when he stepped down in 2022 “we had accomplished half of our original dream” by helping to establish alkaline water as a significant beverage category in the U.S. “However, the second half of that vision, building The Alkaline Water Company into the dominant force in the alkaline water space, remained unfulfilled.”

📊 It might not be a smooth homecoming. Following senior leadership resignations at the top of the year, the company said in February it would move from Nasdaq to OTC, leading to a 99% dive in the stock price over three days that wiped out an estimated $3.4 million in shareholder value.

📝 Wright’s return comes as The Alkaline Water Company is preparing to file an application to become eligible for proprietary broker-deal quotations under the company Pink Sheet Current.

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The U.S. arm of Stoli Group – the owner of Stoli vodka as well as a dozen spirit and wine brands – has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections. 

💰 The group filed last week in Texas, listing more than $100 million in assets and between $50 million to $100 million in liabilities. 

💸 CEO Chris Caldwell said in a statement that the filing will give the company “increased financial flexibility to accelerate investments and position Stoli for long-term stability.”

🗓️ Chapter 11 allows companies the opportunity to operate as usual while working out a plan to restructure its finances. Caldwell expects the restructuring process to conclude in the first half of 2025. 

⚔️ The bankruptcy isn’t just a sign of industry-wide challenges: Stoli’s founder, Russian-born billionaire Yuri Shefler, was exiled in 2000 because of his opposition to President Vladimir Putin, and an ongoing legal battle with Russia has weighed on the company's finances. Caldwell added that the group has been targeted by the Russian Federation since its founding 25 years ago. A cyber attack has also disrupted global operations, forcing the company to operate manually for the past two months. 

There’s a new fulfillment platform on the block and its positioning to be a full-service operations resource for DTC brands. Operating Crew intends to help brands scale ecommerce operations by offering packaging, shipping and 3PL warehouse fulfillment services claiming it can help brands save up to 30% in operational costs.

⛓️ Founded by Yan Sim, who cut his teeth in supply chain management leading teams at Warby Parker, PERCH., Atomic venture studio and, most recently, ecommerce Asian grocery Weee!, Operating Crew is partnering with DTC brands across food, beverage, home goods and personal care with revenue between $3 million and $75 million.

☕ The company has already partnered with Kolkata Chai Co. claiming it has saved the brand 10% in shipping costs.

A labor strike at wholesaler Breakthru Beverage Group lasted less than 24 hours last week, as newly Teamsters-unionized drivers at its Commerce, Calif. facility ratified their first contract with the company.

🚚 Breakthru is a major North American beverage wholesaler and the Teamsters have been swiftly unionizing local offices with the company throughout the year. This latest development marks the first contract between the Teamsters and Breakthru in California.

📝 The California site, now members of Teamsters Local 166, briefly went on strike on November 25 before ratifying a two-year contract with Breakthru leadership that includes wage increases, protection against unjust reprimand and termination and seniority rights for its 45 union workers.

🔍 Context Clues: Organized labor activity has picked up of late in the beverage business. This strike in California may have been momentary, but further north in Oregon, the Teamsters strike against Pepsi distributor Bigfoot Beverage Company is entering into its third month.

In a letter led by U.K.-based investment nonprofit ShareAction, stakeholders are urging six major food and beverage corporations – Coca-Cola, Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Mondelēz, Kellanova and PepsiCo – to increase transparency on the “healthiness” of their products. 

👀 According to the Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNI) 2024 global index, just 34% of sales of the biggest F&B manufacturers worldwide can be considered healthy. Additionally, the report found that the healthiness of the product portfolios hasn’t improved since 2021. 

⭐ The letter requests that the companies adopt one or more internationally recognized nutrition scoring systems – Health Star Rating, Nutri-Score, and NPM – that classify products based on their nutritional content to help consumers identify healthy products and avoid diet-related diseases. 

💭 “The increasing headwinds against unhealthy food sales – from growing consumer preference for healthy products to regulatory, fiscal, and reputational pressure – mean investors have an even greater need for clear and transparent disclosures on the healthiness of product sales. Without this information, we cannot accurately assess related risks and opportunities,” the letter states.