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K-Cups’ Recyclable Claims Are Challenged (Again); Cook Says He Is ‘Heartbroken’ by Events in Minneapolis; Amazon Gives Up on Go and Fresh
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Good morning. Today, a consumer advocacy group accuses Keurig of greenwashing; Tim Cook’s rapport with President Trump has critics calling for a boycott; and Amazon makes another pivot in its physical retail strategy.
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An advocacy group says Keurig’s ‘recyclable’ claims violate Federal Trade Commission guidelines. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
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The WSJ Leadership Institute’s Patrick Coffee writes for the newsletter:
The consumer advocacy group Truth in Advertising has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, arguing that the “recyclable” claim on Keurig coffee pods constitutes deceptive marketing.
Recycling programs serving more than 60% of U.S. consumers don’t take K-Cup pods due to their size, shape and blend of materials including aluminum foil and coffee grounds, according to the complaint.
Keurig’s packaging and recycling claims comply with applicable guidance, a Keurig Dr. Pepper spokeswoman said in a statement. “While recycling systems across the U.S. are varied and diverse, we provide consumers with information on how best to recycle our products and direct them to check locally for their community's specific recycling guidelines,” she said.
This isn’t the first time the Keurig Dr Pepper brand has been accused of so-called greenwashing since it changed the plastic in its drink pods several years ago and began prominently labeling them “recyclable.”
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Keurig in 2023 finalized a $10 million settlement to resolve a class action lawsuit challenging the “recyclable” marketing messages.
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The company in 2024 accepted a $1.5 million civil penalty to settle Securities and Exchange Commission allegations over similar language in annual reports.
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And last year it agreed to pay C$1.85 million to resolve a class action suit alleging it misled Canadian consumers about recyclability.
Keurig revised the fine print on K-Cup packaging as part of the 2023 settlement to say the pods aren’t recycled “in many communities”—stronger than an earlier disclosure that they weren’t accepted in “all communities.”
But people don’t usually have the time or ability to research local recycling while shopping, said Laura Smith, legal director at Truth in Advertising.
“It appears that their recyclable claims are based on a theoretical possibility that these products could be recycled because of the type of plastic they're made out of,” Smith said. “However, they're not being recycled in reality, and therefore the marketing violates state and federal laws and regulations.”
Keurig in 2024 announced plans for plastic-free, compostable pods and a new machine to use them. The pods and machine aren’t yet available.
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Content from our sponsor: Deloitte
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Holiday Retail Takeaways: Signals for Marketers in 2026
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During the holiday shopping season, generative AI played a greater role in e-commerce, while cautious shoppers turned to promotions and other strategies to manage budget pressure. Read More
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Tim Cook shakes hands with President Trump in Davos, Switzerland. Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
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Apple CEO Tim Cook told staff in a memo that he is “heartbroken by the events in Minneapolis” and has expressed concerns privately to President Trump following the killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents there this past weekend, Tim Higgins reports for the Journal.
Cook and Apple have been on the receiving end of social-media anger and boycott calls since Saturday night, when Cook smiled for photos at a White House screening of a coming documentary about Melania Trump while protestors in Minneapolis raged against Pretti’s fatal shooting.
Companies’ nonparticipation trophies are losing their luster.
Executives who have been studiously avoiding political headlines are finding themselves forced to say something.
“What’s happening with ICE is going too far,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote in a Slack message to employees.
The final paragraph of Altman’s message, reported in full by DealBook, reinforces just how active a decision even “staying out of it” can be:
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“Our strategy until now has been cling to the audience that remains on broadcast television. I’m here to tell you that if we stick to that strategy, we’re toast.”
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— CBS News Editor in Chief Bari Weiss in her first major address to staff after a tumultuous first few months on the job. She said the unit is “not producing a product that enough people want” and called for a radical shift in how it delivers the news.
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Amazon said it would shutter all of its Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go locations after their high-tech customer experiences didn’t catch on. Brittany Murray/Orange County Register/Zuma Press
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Amazon is closing its Go and Fresh stores, saying they failed to deliver a distinct customer experience on an economic model that could grow, Kate King, Sean McLain and Joseph De Avila write.
It’s the latest pivot in Amazon’s more than decadelong effort to break into physical retail.
Amazon Fresh, which offers a more mass-market selection than upscale corporate sibling Whole Foods, was overhauled in recent years but ultimately failed to win over enough customers with its high-tech shopping carts and cheaper prices.
Amazon Go convenience stores, which let customers check out without waiting in line, also never widely resonated.
Not done with bricks and mortar: Amazon won approval last week to open its largest-ever store in Orland Park, Ill., a big-box format yet to be named.
Layoffs continue: Amazon on Wednesday said it would cut around 16,000 corporate employees, adding to 14,000 layoffs in October. [WSJ]
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As a company, we aim to stick to our convictions and not get blown around by changing fashions too much. We didn’t become super woke when that was popular, we didn’t start talking about masculine corporate energy when that was popular, and we are not going to make a lot of performative statements now about safety or politics or anything else. But we are going to continue to try to figure out how to actually do the right thing as best as we can, engage with leaders and push for our values, and speak up clearly about it as needed.
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1 million
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New subscribers to Paramount+ on the day of its first UFC event last Saturday, according to an executive who told staffers that was the second-biggest day of sign-ups in the streaming service’s history
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The U.K. might require Google to let publishers opt out of powering AI features such as AI Overviews. Agence France-Presse/Getty Image
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The U.K.’s competition watchdog is planning new rules for Google’s AI Overviews that might give publishers more choice and transparency over how their content is used. [WSJ]
Apparel and equipment brand Arc’teryx named former Tommy Hilfiger executive Avery Baker its chief brand officer, a newly created post. [WWD]
Sydney Sweeney is introducing a lingerie brand called SYRN. [Cosmopolitan]
United Center, the Chicago arena where the Chicago Bulls play, plans to start selling THC drinks during most concerts, shows and sports events. [CBS Chicago]
The latest collaboration from Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos, who worked together on movies including “Poor Things” and “Bugonia,” is a Super Bowl ad for Squarespace. [Ad Age]
Rocket Companies and Redfin’s Super Bowl ad will star Lady Gaga singing “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” theme “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”—the second commercial in the game to feature a Mister Rogers song. (The NFL’s ad is the other.) [Housing Wire]
See Andy Samberg sing as Meal Diamond in Hellmann’s Super Bowl ad. [THR]
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