P’lovers the Environmental Store (Port Perry)

Recently at a staff meeting we were discussing greenwashing. It got me thinking…and that can be a dangerous thing; Jude thinking.

It brought me to this point on a dull Monday morning, what exactly is greenwashing and who is guilty of practising it?

Greenwashing, the act of painting a ‘green facade’ on something to prevent us from seeing what is underneath. It allows companies and corporations to portray themselves as environmentally conscious and responsible. It is put in place to fool us, to pull the wool (or organic cotton) over our eyes.

And I hate to admit; but it works, it works because we get tired of thinking all the time and trying so hard to sort out what is good and what is not, what we can consume and what we can’t, what we can wear, what we can’t, what we can clean with and what will cause us irreversible damage. I am here to help…

How are we able to tell if a green company’s promises are true?

• -the claims are vague and are not backed up with facts. “natural” “environmentally friendly” “good for the planet”
• -the product is billed as having ‘NO environmental impact’, this is pretty much impossible.
• -the company might just state that by purchasing their product you are ’saving the earth’.
• -the claims are not verified by a third party.
• -the green products represent a very miniscule portion of the comany’s business.
• -the company does not respond to enquiries regarding their green-ness.

So, basically we come back to Buyer Beware! We have to be aware of what we are buying, we must pay due diligence before we put our money down on the counter.

Last week a young man entered the store and approached the counter to purchase an Efforts Hemp T Shirt. Before he completed the transaction he asked some important questions about the product: where it was made and how it was transported to P’Lovers and he then asked to see the company’s website. I was pleased to answer his questions and told him it was great to have customers who care, who have that need to know what they are buying and from whom. He left the store with T Shirt in hand (he refused a bag!) and I was left with a good feeling, he went the extra mile as I did as well.

I can assure the consumer at P’Lovers that we pay close attention so that you don’t have to, but if you have any questions or curiousity about the origin or ingredients in our products, please ask, we love to chat and share our knowledge.

-Jude

Editors Note: Check out the Six Sins of Green Washing by TerraChoice for further exploration of this topic!

We also encourage customers to help educate us by referring us to resources and sharing thoughts on our products!