Dillon Davis

Battle Creek Enquirer

Battle Creek-based Kellogg Co. is among more than 360 businesses asking President-elect Donald Trump to follow through on the United States' commitment to combat global climate change.

The group wrote an open letter this week to Trump, President Barack Obama and members of Congress. It has called upon Trump to continue the Paris Climate Agreement, an accord signed by about 180 countries last year dealing with greenhouse gases, mitigating emissions and responding to climate change. Trump has threatened to withdraw the United States from the agreement, Reuters reported this week.

The letter urges the Trump administration to uphold the Paris Agreement because it "will enable and encourage businesses and investors to turn the billions of dollars in existing low-carbon investments into the trillions of dollars the world needs." The businesses said they support world leaders attempting to implement the agreement in an effort to "leverage this historic opportunity to tackle climate change."

Other businesses to sign the letter include Hewlett Packard, Starbucks, General Mills Inc., Nike and Levi Strauss & Co.

Trump previously tweeted that global warming is a hoax "created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive," a comment he's since said was a joke. Additionally, in September, Trump appointed Myron Ebell to lead his transition team for the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Ebell has called climate change "alarmism," and he's the chairman of the Cooler Heads Coalition, a group of nonprofit organizations which "question global warming alarmism and oppose energy rationing policies,” according to its website.

On the EPA's website, the agency states the "evidence is clear" climate change is happening and that humans are "largely responsible" for recent climate change.

Kellogg has not been shy on its position to reduce the impact of climate change. Last year, the company released its climate change policy along with a promise at the New York Times Energy for Tomorrow Conference in Paris to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 65 percent across its operations by 2050.

Kellogg Co. to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2050

"Kellogg is more than a business," company Chairman and CEO John Bryant was quoted as saying in December 2015. "We care about nourishing people with our foods, feeding those in need, nurturing our planet, and living our founder's values."

The complete letter and a list of supporting companies is available online at lowcarbonusa.org.

Contact Dillon Davis at 269-966-0698 or dwdavis@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DillonDavis