Petition to President and CEO of Wendy’s, Emil J. Brolick:

We, the undersigned, ask that Wendy’s substitute at least 50% of their use of palm oil with sunflower oil.

Palm oil is the number one used vegetable oil in everyday products and stores because of it’s productivity, but it is a major driver of rainforest deforestation. According to the World Wildlife Fund, Oil Palm trees grow best in “low-lying, wet, tropical areas – which is also where rainforests occur.” Therefore, rainforests are increasingly being destroyed to meet the growing demand for palm oil. According to the World Wildlife Fund, “an area the equivalent size of 300 football fields of rainforest is cleared each hour to make way for palm oil production.”

Rainforest deforestation has many negative effects. It affects migration patterns and biodiversity of many species, often causing species to become endangered. Species are also often killed if they go onto the plantations, so they cannot establish their own territories. Palm oil manufacturing also hurts humans by releasing a lot of smoke from burning forests, and has forced people to abandon their lands because of rainforest deforestation. We, as humans, already release surplus amount of carbon into the atmosphere. Forests serve a purpose to take in that carbon and release oxygen for us. If we destroy those forests, there will be nothing that takes in carbon. Thus, leading to extra emission of carbon and rise in temperatures. This leads to global warming and rise in sea levels. In other words, if we take away the rainforests, we trigger and unleash a chain of environmental chaos.

We are choosing to petition Wendy’s because according to the “Palm Oil Scorecard of 2015”, Wendy’s made absolutely no effort to help stop deforestation by substituting their use of palm oil with another type of oil. However, fast food restaurants such as Starbucks, Burger King, and Dunkin’ Donuts have started making a small effort to change their oil usage to a more sustainable oil. In 2016, Wendy’s said that they have taken an approach on helping the situation of deforestation. According to an article about Wendy’s efforts, by the union of concerned scientists, “the most Wendy’s will commit to is buying RSPO-certified oil (and in some cases only GreenPalm certificates) to cover their U.S. and Canadian operations… when a company uses GreenPalm certificates, the palm oil they use may still be from deforestation.” Although Wendy’s may be saying that they are trying to make an effort, they’re still using oil that contributes to deforestation, and we want to galvanize them to make this vital change.

Sunflower oil is a much better alternative to palm oil. First, it is the closest oil in price to palm oil, so it would be convenient for companies like Wendy’s to use. Sunflower oil is also a  much healthier option because palm oil is extremely unhealthy and harmful to humans. Health benefits of sunflower oil include improved heart health, strengthened immune system, improved skin health, prevention of cancer, lower cholesterol, and protection against asthma, along with other numerous health benefits. Finally, the most important reason to switch to sunflower oil is that, unlike palm oil, it does not cause deforestation. If companies like Wendy’s start to make an effort to help prevent deforestation, other companies can follow in their footsteps.

Starting with Wendy’s, we can decrease palm oil demand and stop rainforest deforestation!