We eat day in and day out and the cycle never stops. When we're particularly inspired, we sometimes go to great lengths to fuel our furnaces with food that is a lot healthier for us than what is conventionally available in mainstream grocery stores. Some of us do it religiously, no matter the financial cost because a) we feel that we deserve the best quality edibles that we can access b) we believe that our body is our temple c) traditional food production methods scare the bejeezus out of us d) it's all for the good of Mother Nature and/or e) health concerns compel us to reach for organic without exception. Whatever the motivation, there are more organically produced foods available in the marketplace than ever before, not just at the local big box store but also at the corner market and everywhere in between. Isn't it nice to know that American consumers have far more options to treat our bodies and the planet with TLC? Warm and fuzzies aside, other countries are light years ahead of us in terms of educating, enlightening and motivating consumers to make far more eco-conscious purchasing decisions.
Case in point. Swedish food brand "Garant" -- launched in autumn 2009 by Axfood --offers high quality traditionally manufactured food products such as snack items, pasta and meatballs priced at 10% - 15% less than competitor versions. That might be nice to know if you were planning to move to the Nordic land of lush forests and ABBA enthusiasts, but bear with me for a moment. Concurrently, the company also sells a "Garant ekologiska varor" version of their goods - aka Garant Ecological Everyday - that offers consumers an organic option that is affordably priced. Again, nice to know, but they take it slightly further than what American shoppers are accustomed to by displaying where each item in their line is produced (and by whom) directly on every label. According to one Axfood representative, "These are often smaller companies that produce their goods with care, diligence and tradition." By revealing the story behind the process of growing, harvesting and manufacturing organic food, they believe that shoppers will become more connected to what they choose to put in their bodies and deliberately reach for organic far more regularly.
Would it work for you? Imagine if every American grocery shelf offered just 2 versions of the same product - a conventionally manufactured version and one that was organic/eco-friendly with the story of its cultivation, ingredients and production boldly emblazoned on every label. How would that extra information affect your purchasing decision? Do you care enough about how your food is really produced? If not, shouldn't you? Let's take it a step further - for simple distinction and ease of stocking, let's suggest for argument's sake that manufacturers chose to package a regular line of goods in standard non-offensive white and a planet/human friendly version in bright green. Would you feel guilted into placing entirely green packaged items in your cart just so you wouldn't have to endure the disapproving look of fellow shoppers who could potentially scrutinize your selections and write you off as an eco-heathen? If this packaging concept were adopted industry wide -- not just to simplify and streamline our offerings but also to really help global consumers embrace positive green lifestyle changes - wouldn't it be just the push we need to more aggressively move forward into a legitimately green future?
Oh, but it's just food we're talking about...no one's going to drop dead eating an occasional bag of Lay's potato chips or a conventionally raised avocado. It's sort of like gasoline. Who among us hasn't succumbed to the allure of cheaper unleaded fuel prices even though we know that buying the higher grade is probably better for our cars and the planet? (Aside from just hoofing to our destination, that is.) Referencing the scenario proposed above, let's say that between the two versions of each grocery product that we could buy, the organic one is priced just 15% higher than the conventionally produced one. Sure, it adds up, but would that slightly extra cost be something that you would willingly fit into your budget? Do you think that having too many choices at the store has been a contributing factor to the challenges that our planet faces today? Would it really be a terrible sacrifice if we were limited to just 2 versions - regular and organic -- of every product? Could implementing that simple change make our planet and lifestyles far greener?
First image courtesy of Jeff Keen.
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