Day 008 - 07 Jul 94 - Page 26


     
     1        do not have page numbers -- that though you were not at
              this time employed by McDonald's, you were one of the
     2        members of the task force?
              A.  Yes, I was a member of the task force.  I represented
     3        Perseco.  I represented the decision making person related
              to packaging.
     4
         Q.   Please tell us this:  What was the stimulus or reason why
     5        this partnership was created?
              A.  From our perspective or the Environmental Defence Fund
     6        perspective?
 
     7   Q.   I do not mind -- both.
              A.  From our perspective, we had been doing many things to
     8        try to reduce our solid waste impact.  I referenced the
              CONAG document as an example of that throughout the 80s.
     9        However, we felt that we still need to learn much more,
              and we also knew that we needed to find good, sound
    10        science to help guide our decision making process.  So,
              the desire on McDonald's part was to find a partner that
    11        could be objective, that could take a look from the
              outside in and say to McDonald's:  "You could do this, you
    12        could do, to give us the science and the facts to move our
              business forward from a solid waste management
    13        perspective".
 
    14   Q.   Can I stop you there?  We will come to the EDF angle in a
              moment.  From time to time, no doubt, public opinion
    15        suggests that you should move in this, that or the other
              direction.  You have described some of those phenomena
    16        earlier today?
              A.  Yes.
    17
         Q.   When that happens, what is McDonald's reaction?  Does it
    18        jump in the direction that public opinion points
              immediately or does it take time it to look at the thing?
    19        A.  One, is we do listen to our customers immediately so
              we read all the letters.  I personally see all the letters
    20        that come into McDonald's related to environmental
              issues.  Phone calls are documented, so we have a very
    21        firm pulse of what our customers think.
 
    22        In terms of a response we take that into consideration and
              we want to be able to respond to our customers.  On the
    23        other hand, we also want to take a look at the science and
              the facts related to an issue to basically melt both
    24        sides.  Usually, the consumer side is somewhat simplistic
              in terms of the issue.  The issue is basically a very
    25        complicated issue, so we try to work with both ends.
  
    26   Q.   Is the recycling of paper, in a broad sense, one of those 
              issues where it is necessary to proceed with a degree of 
    27        caution in relation to public opinion?
              A.  Yes.
    28
         Q.   I think you told us that earlier, in effect.  Can I ask
    29        you whether you know what the motivation of the
              Environmental Defence Fund was in this partnership?
    30        A.  The Environmental Defence Fund, in my opinion, saw
              McDonald's as a leading company in the United States; that

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