Recently I purchased a gorgeous wood & bamboo hairbrush from a local eco-business and like other people who opt to pay a premium for ethical eco-friendly alternative products I felt that I was contributing to a positive change. I love upgrading items that I use everyday for more sustainable options and I love supporting local eco-friendly businesses but like many others I still feel incredible overwhelm when I consider how far we have to go to make our lifestyles truly sustainable and reverse the damage that has been done through generations of over dependence on fossil fuels and irresponsible mass consumerism.
In the current economic climate of stagnant wages and cost of living inflation, which has led to a rapid decline in living standards in the UK & Ireland how can consumers be expected to prioritise the future of the planet? Currently many individuals are struggling to pay their food, energy and housing costs so paying a premium for sustainable goods & packaging is out of reach for many households.
It got me thinking about whose responsibility it is to do their bit, there are many profitable corporations who are thriving amid the current economic crisis.
In 2022 Tesco plc made a pre-tax profit of £2.2 billion while Sainsburys made £327 million profits before tax. It occurs to me that these corporations generate huge profits and have much greater financial resources at their disposal than any consumers. If this is the case then why is it being left up to the efforts of individuals and small businesses to eliminate the use of single use plastic? I am consistently hearing of innovative packaging invented all around the world and yet every time I do the weekly food shop I feel as though I am drowning in plastic. I think it is high time corporations like Tesco’s invested some of their profits in taking single use plastic off their shelves from fruit punnets to plastic wrap on items like rice and pasta. While I recognise that some retailers are making efforts to replace plastic in their packaging it is no where near enough. The plastic bag tax was introduced in October 2015 and today I rarely if ever see people carrying out their weekly shop without their own supply of bags. Again individuals seem to be doing all they can to reduce their plastic consumption but they are not matched in their efforts by profit making entities who profit from sales of irresponsibly packaged grocery items. Perhaps a plastic packaging tax should be levied on the supermarkets for each item sold? That might finally convince them to do their bit.
