No. 06 //Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
There is power in spending. Everything from your shampoo to your shoes requires you to open your wallet and shell out some cash. But once you make the spend, just who does the money go to? What are the values of the companies you're choosing to support and do they align with your own? If you're ever having one of those days where you're feeling like your positive impacts on the planet aren't amounting to much, consider this:
According to National Geographic, an individual will consume approximately 19,826 eggs in their lifetime. Hens are raised with a wide range of living standards (from awful to good), depending on the farm. When we buy a carton of eggs, we tell the retailer selling those eggs that we approve of their choice to sell this product and we tell the farm producing the eggs that we approve of the hen's quality of life and the social, economic and environmental impacts of their operation. At about $2.50/dozen, that's $4,130 worth of approval. It adds up.
Another example of our influence as consumers is the rise in availability of organic food. Even just a few years ago, it was hard to find an organic banana at a large-scale retailer while now it's the norm. How did this happen? We, as consumers, demanded better options and we ponied up the extra 20 cents and voted "yes" with our wallets.
According to BeeAction.org, "80 percent of Americans believe it is important to eliminate neonicotinoids from agriculture. Among Americans who grocery shop for their household, 73 percent believe it is important for grocery stores to sell food grown without neonicotinoids, and 65 percent would be more likely to shop at a grocery store that has formally committed to eliminating neonicotinoids."
With data like this, retailers like Costco and Whole Foods are listening but the bulk of our large-scale retail options are straggling behind...far behind. You can view the score card here.
If the data is not going to convince them, our dollars most certainly will. #spendwisely //