Apple trolled for plastic-wrapped cookies at iPhone 15 event after tall environmental claims

YouTuber Nikias Molina shared pics of the cookies at Apple Event (Image credit: @NikiasMolina/Twitter)

Apple’s efforts to achieve carbon neutrality and cut down on plastic packaging took centrestage at the 2023 Apple ‘Wonderlust’ Event. The event even included an ad film starring Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer as Mother Nature, where Apple executives, including CEO Tim Cook, rattled off the company’s many impressive efforts to mitigate its environmental impact.

Early on in the ad film, an Apple employee informed Mother Nature that the tech company is in the process of eliminating all plastic from its packaging by the end of next year. While the no-plastic packaging mandate may be true for Apple products, organisers of the Apple Event 2023 clearly did not get the memo – because event attendees were given cookies wrapped individually in clear plastic.

Apple gave us cookies at the event.

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They were so good.

pic.twitter.com/QaUXa9aLc7

— Nikias Molina (@NikiasMolina) September 16, 2023

The post immediately made Apple a target for social media trolling as dozens of critics called out the company’s “hypocrisy” and “double standards.”

“Our best cookies yet. We used all natural flour, butter and eggs. The plastic wrap is leftover from the unsold iphones,” quipped one Twitter user.

Our best cookies yet.

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We used all natural flour, butter and eggs. The plastic wrap is leftover from the unsold iphones.

We can't wait for you to take a bite of these. They will be available September 22 at your nearest bakery.

Hashtag #cookiecutter.

— Aman Sharma (@amansharmadb) September 17, 2023

“That’s 100% carbon neutral biodegradable plastic with 80% similarity to the biodegradability of paper. Apple is on track to increase its biodegradability to a whopping 130% by the year 2025. That’s a 25% increase in the biodegradability of Apple cookie plastic wrap year after year. Apple will be the first company on the planet to increase the biodegradability of its plastic past 100% by end of next year,” another joked. The post was a play on Apple employees waxing eloquent on the company’s many efforts to mitigate environmental impact in its climate change ad.

That’s 100% carbon neutral biodegradable plastic with 80% similarity to the biodegradability of paper. Apple is on track to increase its biodegradability to a whopping 130% by the year 2025. That’s a 25% increase in the biodegradability of Apple cookie plastic wrap year after…

— michael colon (@dagoatao) September 16, 2023

isn't that a plastic? pic.twitter.com/qhSetUBJ7R

— pius (@pius_onapa) September 18, 2023

And others were more straightforward in their criticism

Terrible package

— Blake Haggett, CCIM (@blake_hagz) September 17, 2023

It would have been a nice touch if the wrapper had said, “Made in Cupertino.”

Or, you know, been made of biodegradable material or something.

— Josh Long (the JoshMeister) (@theJoshMeister) September 17, 2023

Must’ve been a lot of plastic.

— Tailosive Tech (@TailosiveTech) September 16, 2023