Herzogenaurach, Germany, July 10, 2009
PUMA SUPPORTS MCCARTNEY CAMPAIGN “MEAT FREE MONDAY”

Sportlifestyle company PUMA supports the “Meat Free Monday” campaign launched by Sir Paul McCartney and his daughters Stella and Mary. By cutting out meat consumption on Mondays, this campaign works towards minimizing global greenhouse gas emissions through reducing methane that is released by cattle. PUMAVision, PUMA’s concept of ethical conduct and corporate social responsibility, endorses this campaign through the PUMAVision category puma.safe by guiding all its 10,000 employees to refrain from eating meat on Monday, for at least one day per week. The company canteen at PUMA’s headquarters in Herzogenaurach will no longer provide meat on Mondays, but offer meat-free options, and all other PUMA canteens globally will follow. PUMA is pleased to be one of the first corporations to support “Meat Free Mondays.”

“We at PUMA have already done a lot to mitigate PUMA’s negative impact on our planet,” said Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of PUMA. “Through our PUMAVision category puma.safe, we started to more accurately measure the carbon footprint of our offices worldwide, which will help us to identify areas where we can further reduce our carbon footprint. As Methane released by cows is responsible for 18% of gas emissions, PUMA is supporting the “Meat Free Monday” campaign and encourages its employees to do the same by avoiding meat consumption at least once a week on Mondays.”

Sir Paul McCartney said: “I think many of us feel helpless in the face of environmental challenges, and it can be hard to know how to sort through the advice about what we can do to make a meaningful contribution to a cleaner, more sustainable, healthier world. Having one designated meat free day a week is actually a meaningful change that everyone can make, that goes to the heart of several important political, environmental and ethical issues all at once. For instance it not only addresses pollution, but better health, the ethical treatment of animals, global hunger and community and political activism.”

“Meat Free Monday” is an initiative by Sir Paul McCartney and his daughters Stella and Mary to encourage meat-eaters to forgo carnivorous meals for one day each week. The campaign website www.supportMFM.org provides additional information on tasty and healthy alternatives, while the website www.carbonneutralbeef.com can provide additional information on what the meat industry has been doing to reduce its impact.

Under puma.safe, PUMA is bringing together all of it’s longstanding work on environmental issues and decent work in decent workplaces, and combining it with new initiatives that will drive us to cleaner, greener, safer and more sustainable systems and practices. Earlier this year PUMA supported the environmental movie “HOME” by bringing this powerful commentary on the major environmental and social issues challenging our world to as many viewers as possible. At PUMA we know that creating awareness of our environment’s emergency state is crucial and acting on that awareness through positive action is our contribution to a more responsible corporate ethic.

PUMAVision unites all PUMA initiatives that come under the heading ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’, giving them a coherent direction and framework. It comes from a vision of a world that is better than the one we know now—a world that is safer, more peaceful and more creative. The PUMAVision programs puma.safe (focusing on environmental and social issues), puma.peace (supporting global peace), and puma.creative (supporting artists and creative organizations), reflect PUMA’s commitment to social and environmental responsibility and define the partnerships and initiatives PUMA will support and pursue.

Photo Credits: Robert Ashcroft/ PUMA