It seems these days we are forever being bombarded by advertising telling us something is environmentally aware / new / sustainable / compostable etc, but is it just a case of all that glitters is not gold. We are forever having to make ethical choices but are we just being fed eco/green propaganda by clever advertising executives?

Is palm oil bad if it is sustainable?

As more palm oil can be grown per acre than any other oil would it mean if we all turned our backs on palm oil more rainforests would be lost as more land would be needed to grow other vegetable oils.

Compostable posting bags!

Magazines are proudly promoting their bags are compostable. When things came in the post in paper envelopes they were compostable too. We could also light fires with them or reuse them.

Local?

We buy local products like milk to support businesses in the local community. But also support the plastic problem by having to buy the milk in plastic bottles, which themselves have to be shipped X miles. So does our calculation of food miles also need to include the wrapping?

Thoughts?

The first thought I have come to when seeing a new eco/green item is:-

1. Do I really need it?
2. Was there another eco/green version we used to use quite happily in “the old days”?
3. Why is this company now trying to tell me it is supporting eco/green when five years ago they didn’t?

Conclusion.

Caveat emptor (let the buyer beware).

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