Day 292 - 01 Nov 96 - Page 38
1 exaggerating or only putting part of the picture. I don't
2 think it means that if someone gets a piece of paper which
3 says 'recycled' on it, that in fact it is not, or does not
4 contain any, recycled content. That would be a lie, and it
5 does not say that there. In fact, it says only a tiny
6 percent of it is, i.e., implying that it is an
7 exaggeration, they are exaggerating.
8
9 MR JUSTICE BELL: Just pause a moment. (Pause) Well, if one is
10 looking for justification of that statement, whatever it
11 means, are you saying one looks at bags, for instance, or
12 whatever, with 'recycled paper' stamped on it, or whatever
13 the logo is, and says that that is deceptive because it
14 gives the impression that a large part of it is recycled
15 when it is only a small part? That is situation one. Or
16 are you saying that amongst the publicity material
17 McDonald's put out, like fact sheets, they pretend that
18 they have recycled quite a lot, but they do not actually do
19 that because nothing is recycled after it has gone through
20 its full useful life, or only a tiny percentage of it?
21
22 MR. MORRIS: Yes, it is the second point. Well, you know, as
23 they say, we do not want to get too convoluted in the
24 construction, but the sting of it is that when McDonald's
25 say they are using recycled paper they are exaggerating.
26 Now, I would say that means that if it is on a particular
27 item what is the exact recycled content, or when they say
28 in their pamphlet how committed they are to using recycled
29 paper, or talking to the press, or whatever, because those
30 would be two major sources of information the public get
31 physically on the packaging itself and through McDonald's
32 own documentation and press releases, whatever. But it is
33 clear, the sting of it is that McDonald's are making claims
34 about using recycled paper one way or the other, but only a
35 tiny percent of it actually is.
36
37 MR JUSTICE BELL: Do you actually have a list of the documents
38 or bits of photograph where I can see their representations
39 of recycling, whether it is just a letterhead which had
40 'recycled paper' on it, or a bag which had 'recycled
41 paper' on it, or if it is a McFact card; do you see what
42 I mean?
43
44 MR. MORRIS: I have not got a separate list. It has come up in
45 evidence as we have gone through. Some of it is just not
46 any particular specific document, it can be a press report
47 from what they-----
48
49 MR JUSTICE BELL: Yes. What I think might help me, if I just
50 had a few examples amongst all the documents I have got,
51 and again this is something you can put in, direct me where
52 in the papers, I know there is the McFact card. Just pause
53 a moment. (Pause) Can you think of anything else, just at
54 this minute?
55
56 MR. MORRIS: You know, I think a big thing about the specific
57 words 'recycled paper' on a item from packs, or general
58 claims about specific items, is that that recycled content
59 is not genuinely recycled.
60
