Thrilla in manila
October 16, 2012
Written by: Ethan Robinson
Featuring the global fried chicken king, weighing in at ten-piece bucket! Skinned, battered, deep-fried! They call him the colonel — you know his real name, folks: it’s KFC! (The crowd roars.)
In the other corner, you have the scrappiest boxer of them all. He’s mean, he’s green, he’s a fightnin’ machine! He’s quick and agile, he wants no new nukes: it’s Greenpeace! (The crowd roars again.)
This would set the scene for the biggest environmental boxing match since the BP crisis.
In the opening rounds, Greenpeace throws out a bold, daring accusation, backed by independent testing: that KFC’s paper source, Asia Pulp and Paper, churns out their products by cutting down rainforests in Indonesia.
Asia Pulp and Paper body up to block, and claim that the paper products can come from multiple sources. They claim that all of their products are recycled, or from sustainable sources. Dodging and weaving, the conglomerate is moving fast.
Greenpeace throws a blinding right hook in the form of a picture showing a KFC box that lists the paper products the company uses.
KFC is backed into a corner, and it looks like Greenpeace is going to be the winner. As of now, Asia Pulp and Paper has stated that they are going to postpone all natural forest clearance on their concessions by June 1st, which they say was previously planned but has been continually pushed back. Greenpeace lands a solid one, right in the kisser.
But who’s really getting knocked out? The Sumatran Tiger. Their home is located in the Indonesian rainforest, which is currently being destroyed.
It has been labeled as critically endangered, with population rates showing no signs of bouncing back. There are an estimated 500 to 600 tigers left, and the final round is approaching. They can only be found in protected reservations. It is the choice of everyday consumers to fight for those that can’t fight for themselves.
For more information, search online for “KFC,” “Indonesian Rainforest,” and “Sumatran Tiger.” Also, visit Greenpeace.org to learn more about the ongoing battle, and other projects they’ve undertaken.
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