Ecoflation, a new worry, could hit consumer goods
Ecoflation – the rising cost of doing business in a world with a changing climate – could hit consumer goods hard in the next five to 10 years. According to the study, released on December 9, by World Resources Institute and A.T.Kearney, Rattling Supply Chains: the effect of environmental trends on the fast moving consumer goods industry, businesses in the fast-moving consumer goods industry could see earnings fall by 13-31% by 2013 and 19-47% in earnings by 2018 if they do not implement sustainable strategies throughout their supply chains. These pressures will affect firms in an array of industries, particularly companies that depend on natural resources to produce consumer goods.
Contact: World Resources Institute www.wri.org
Business takes a lead on sustainable consumption
Business can play a leading role in fostering more sustainable consumption patterns, according to a report released on December 17 by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. The report, sustainable consumption: facts and trends from a business perspective, is the result of a year-long study of the relationship between business activities, consumer behaviour and environmental and social challenges. The report affirms that current global consumption patterns are unsustainable.
Contact: World Business Council for Sustainable Development www.wbcsd.org
Public told to name irresponsible drinks
A national press advertising campaign, launched on December 1 by the Portman Group, appealed for consumer complaints about irresponsible drinks producer marketing in the run-up to Christmas. Compliance with the Portman Group’s Code of Practice on the Naming, Packaging and Promotion of Alcoholic Drinks is mandatory for all UK producers, regardless of the size of company or type of alcohol they produce.
Advertisements in the UK press urged people to complain at Christmas if they have concerns under the strapline ‘All we want for Christmas are your complaints’.
Contact: The Portman Group www.portman-group.org.uk
Co-op wants firmer action to protect fish stocks and wildlife
Thirty per cent of the seas around the UK must become no-take marine reserves by 2020 if the marine environment is to recover from decades of overfishing and habitat destruction. That is the view of The Co-operative as it launched its ‘Marine Reserves Now’ campaign on December 8 in partnership with the Marine Conservation Society. The launch of the campaign follows the announcement of a UK Marine Bill in the Queen’s Speech on December 3 followed by no further specifications from the government. For this reason, the Co-op is mobilising its customers and three million members to put pressure on Government to strengthen the Marine Bill.
Contact: The Co-Operative Group www.co-operative.coop
Has the innocent halo fallen off?
Innocent Drinks was the biggest food and drink casualty in the Top Products Survey 2008, with sales falling from £134 million to £107 million, a 20.2% drop. The market-leading smoothie brand, which has seen meteoric growth since its launch in 1998, has struggled as consumers tighten their purse strings. With PepsiCo pulling out all the stops for the launch of Tropicana Smoothies, which hit shelves in February with a £4.5 million marketing push, the leading player in the juices and smoothies category has widened its lead, with sales up 16.6% to £282.8 million.
Contact: Innocent www.innocentdrinks.co.uk
Economic downturn will not stop rise in ethical consumerism
The economic downturn will not halt the growth in ethical consumerism, The Co-operative Bank declared on the November 28 as it published its ninth annual report into green spending. The Report shows that despite the first tremors of the downturn being felt towards the end of last year, the overall ethical market in the UK was worth £35.5 billion in 2007, up 15% from £31 billion in the previous 12 months. In particular, the Bank cites the impact of green legislation and choice editing as key factors that will continue to drive sales in a number of product areas.
Contact: The Co-operative Bank www.co-operativebank.co.uk
The latest report from the Cooperative Bank makes confident predictions that the ‘economic downturn’ (R word anyone?) that we now find ourselves in will not stop the growth of ethical consumerism. This is echoed by FutureLabs identification of what they have termed ‘Affluent Activism’ which they claim is here to stay, even as affluence declines.
But what should we make of this when almost every other day another survey comes out suggesting just the opposite? Take the findings of Future Foundation. In December they reported that the economy has massively overtaken the environment among the top concerns of UK consumers and most worryingly that this change was most pronounced among previously committed green consumers. Indeed the example given in this publication of Innocent Drinks facing a pretty enormous blip in its previously supersonic growth also appears to reflect a general readiness by consumers to prioritise cash over conscience.
How can brands make sense of what is really going on out there in order to ensure they continue to develop the correct strategies that will engage their consumers during tough times and create loyalty that will help them weather the storm?
To get some clarity one needs to take a step back from the attention grabbing headlines and take a longer term view on the evolution of consumer consciousness and our growing understanding of what it is that defines a successful brand. The way consumers interact with the brands they choose reflects Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Where once people would select products or brands that could help them meet their basic needs, subsequent generation were able to focus on satisfying their wants and a long time this was the premise on which brands were built. But constantly and unquestioningly providing products and services designed to meet people’s ever more insatiable wants appears to have been unsustainable and so now, we are moving to a time when people are looking to form connections with brands that share their ideals and beliefs.
So, with that view in mind, I think the smart money (as if anyone has got any left…) is safest backing the ethical brands.
Grace Palazzo Grace.palazzo@corporate-citizenship.com
Six tier scores on the doors approved
On December 10, the Food Standards Agency Board approved a new six-tier ‘scores on the doors’ scheme for restaurants, pubs and caterers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, which will give consumers clear information about hygiene standards in food businesses. It has attracted fierce criticism from trade associations, which see it as unnecessarily complicated and bureaucratic. The British Hospitality Association has expressed surprise at the decision, as the option to go with a six-tier scheme was not in the FSA’s March consultation.
British Hospitality Association www.bha.org.uk
Food Standards Agency http://www.food.gov.uk/
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