Greenwashing – Beware the consumer.

GREENWASHING

I have often wondered about ‘environmentally friendly’ SUV’s, or the mountain of cleaning and houseware products that have recently shown up on the grocery store shelves. All of a sudden it seems that you can buy any of these items and more in either an “environmentally friendly” version, or a regular version. Both are often made by the same company and you can find them right next to each other on the supermarket shelf.

Did they build a new factory I wonder, is it a totally different process, totally different chemicals? Did they just tweak a few ingredients and design new packaging or is it a totally new product made genuinely with conscious materials?

So yes, I am a little concerned about these ‘green’ products that are showing up so fast and furiously on our grocery store shelves. The question isn’t even limited to what is in the product or how the products are made, but we also have to wonder things like: how is it transported? How is it packaged, how is it manufactured? So many things to think about if we are going to be truly earth conscious; if toxic energy and chemicals are spewed into the atmosphere while these products are manufactured its good to know. It may be declared a non-toxic product on the shelf but if it wasn’t manufactured responsibly we might think twice. In purchasing these products it seems to be important to understand the how/why/what/where, so that we can not only think about the potential health impact of using the product but also the negative impact from the production and transportation of the product on our environment.

I have just become familier with the term Greenwashing: Wikipedia lists this as, Greenwash[ing] is a term used to describe the perception of consumers that they are being misled by a company regarding the environmental practices of the company or the environmental benefits of a product or service. It is a deceptive use of green PR or green marketing. The term green sheen has similarly been used to describe organizations which attempt to appear that they are adopting practices beneficial to the environment.

Greenwashing was coined by suburban NY environmentalist Jay Westerveld in 1986, in an essay regarding the hotel industry’s practice of placing green placards in each room, promoting reuse of guest-towels, ostensibly to “save the environment”. Westerveld noted that, in most cases, little or no effort toward waste recycling was being implemented by these institutions, due in part to the lack of cost-cutting affected by such practice. Westerveld opined that the actual objective of this “green campaign” on the part of many hoteliers was, in fact, profit increase.

Westerveld hence monikered this and other outwardly environmentally-conscientious acts with a greater, underlying purpose of profit increase as greenwashing.  [wikipedia]

Companies profiting from ‘suggesting’ their products are green? No, say it isn’t so!

At The Greenwashing Index you will find an online interactive forum where you can discuss your concerns about green claims, look for you favorite products or check out advertisements and declarations companies have made about their product lines.

If you are concerned about a product that you have bought or are considering purchasing an environmentally safe product, you can go to the Scientific Certification Systems to help you find environmentally conscious products.

A couple of good companies we know about, 7th Generation, and Planet Inc.

Make an adjustment: Stay healthy ~ Be Happy ~ Be conscious!

Call Dr Paul or Dr Susan for your next chiropractic appointment. Evergreen Colorado 303.674.1500 or email office@fontanachiro.com

Feedback