Grove Collaborative and Virgin Group launch new campaign against plastic with brand advocate Drew Barrymore and Sir Richard Branson

SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–In a brand new video campaign, Grove Collaborative’s global brand advocate Drew Barrymore and Sir Richard Branson have come together to raise awareness of the growing problem of plastic waste – urging businesses and consumers not to divert the look as our pollution crisis worsens.

In a short video, Drew Barrymore and Sir Richard Branson together explore the lesser-known facts about the plastics crisis, including:

• People consume an average of 44 pounds (20 kg) of plastic in their lifetime – with some consuming up to 55 pounds¹

• Plastic waste accounts for 80% of all marine pollution and around 8-10 million metric tons of plastic ends up in the ocean every year

• By 2050 plastic will likely overtake all fish in the sea²

• A quarter* (26%) of Americans feel “helpless” about the plastic crisis, believing there is no way to solve the problem

• Nearly three-quarters* (72%) of respondents say they expect brands to do more to solve the plastic crisis

• Humans have produced more plastic in the past 10 years than in the previous century combined.³

Since the start of the pandemic, the plastic crisis has only gotten worse, with 26,000 tonnes of Covid plastic waste polluting the ocean worldwide⁴, putting further pressure on an already spiraling global problem. With climate change⁵ and with plastic waste being one of many social and economic concerns for Americans right now, it’s critical that we continue to educate consumers about why this issue is urgent and encourage businesses to take much more meaningful action. to help consumers reduce their plastic consumption.

The campaign, which will be rolled out on social media and online today, aims to tackle the false narrative that we can’t do anything about the plastic waste crisis. Almost half of consumers (48%) admit they don’t know what else to do to tackle the plastic crisis and four in 10 (39%) think brands aren’t doing enough to help stop the plastic crisis. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of consumers say they expect brands to do more to solve the plastic problem, according to new research* commissioned by Virgin and Grove.

With this new campaign and the brand’s ongoing commitment to becoming plastic-free by 2025, Grove Collaborative is committed to ensuring it is not alone in this fight – calling on investors, businesses and consumers to work together to create lasting change.

“Consumers are looking for brands to lead the way and make life easier for them without plastic,” said Stuart Landesberg, co-founder and CEO of Grove Collaborative. “Our industry needs to change, and while we understand zero plastic is an ambitious challenge over the next three years, we know it’s possible, and we call on all businesses around the world to join us in this commitment. .”

Drew Barrymore, investor and global sustainability advocate for Grove, adds: “It’s amazing to learn how much plastic we consume. The truth is that we are in the midst of a plastic crisis. And while it is easy to feel helpless, more and more people and brands are stepping up to rise to the challenge. I’m proud to play a part in supporting Grove’s mission to become plastic-free by 2025 and helping households across America do the same.

Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, adds: “I sat down with Drew Barrymore to talk about how scary it is that people consume an average of 44 pounds (20 kg) of plastic in their lifetime. Microplastics are everywhere – in the ocean, in our food and therefore, in our bodies. At Virgin, we are proud to invest in companies that have a positive impact on the planet, from renewable energy to companies that tackle the global plastic problem like Grove Collaborative. Grove shows the way by showing how brands can diversify and innovate to help consumers with their plastic consumption.Plus, Virgin Red members in the US will soon be able to earn Virgin Points on Grove products, meaning that they are rewarded for doing the right thing in the fight against the plastic crisis.

To learn more about Grove’s fight against the plastic crisis, visit grove.com/beyondplastic.

About Grove Collaborative Holdings, Inc.

Launched in 2016 as a certified B Corp, Grove Collaborative Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GROV) (“Grove”) transforms consumer products into a positive force for human and environmental good. Driven by the belief that sustainability is the only future, Grove creates and manages more than 150 high-performing eco-friendly brands of home cleaning, personal care, laundry, clean beauty, baby care and pet care products serving millions of homes across the United States. year. With a flexible monthly delivery model and access to knowledgeable Grove guides, Grove makes it easy for anyone to create lasting routines.

Every product that Grove offers – from its flagship brand of sustainable homecare essentials, Grove Co., its plastic-free, vegan personal care line, Peach Not Plastic, and its zero-waste pet care brand, Good Fur, to its exceptional third-party brands – has been verified against Grove’s strict standards to be beautifully effective, supportive of healthy habits, ethically produced and cruelty-free. Grove Collaborative is a charitable corporation with a mission to Go Beyond Plastic™ and in 2021 entered physical retail for the first time at Target stores nationwide. Grove is the world’s first plastic neutral retailer and is committed to being 100% plastic free by 2025.

For more information, visit www.grove.com.

About Virgin Group

The Virgin Group is a leading international investment group and one of the world’s most recognized and respected brands. Established in 1970 with the birth of Virgin Records, the Virgin Group has gone on to invest, incubate and grow a number of successful businesses in both private and public markets. The Virgin Group has grown across many industries since its inception, driven by Sir Richard’s ambition to create the world’s most irresistible brand. These sectors include travel and leisure, financial services, health and wellness, technology and internet, music and entertainment, media and mobile, space and renewable energy. Avoiding the impacts of climate change is a key priority for Virgin-branded businesses and we believe all Virgin-branded businesses should achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 or sooner, more details on this will be published in the Virgin Group sustainability report later this year. Learn more at www.virgin.com.

¹https://graphics.reuters.com/ENVIRONMENT-PLASTIC/0100B4TF2MQ/index.html

²https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_New_Plastics_Economy.pdf

³https://plasticoceans.org/the-facts/

⁴Nanjing University, the authors of Scale and impact of plastic waste associated with the pandemic published in the online journal PNAS.

⁵https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2020/06/23/two-thirds-of-americans-think-government-should-do-more-on-climate/

* The sample size of respondents was 2,000 respondents across the UK in April 2022, conducted by Censuswide. The same research was also conducted in the United States and Australia with 2,000 respondents respectively.