A major milk supplier have hit the market recently with a milk bottle that is light proof claiming that the milk tastes better for longer- is this a marketing gimmick or fact?
Just google it and you will find tonnes of feedback on this - much of it negative. 'Obtain the milk fresh', 'stick it in the dark fridge', 'at least in a clear bottle I can see how much is in it' is some of the feedback. You get the picture.
Why does this topic fit on the blog - because it raises a question around how future focussed the company really are!
- The bottles are heavier - they must contain more plastic, therefore using more resources to produce and costing more to transport.
- The bottles are of mixed plastic (3 different types I understand). Although they may have a recycling triangle and number on them, this doesn't mean they get recycled. It is notoriously more difficult to recycle plastic that is mixed so they may still end up at landfill if there is no market. I note that Anchor are marketing this product as recyclable but there is no mention of a market for this mixed plastic bottle.
Is this product necessary? Does this new product help to reduce the drain on resources and create a more cyclic product? You can answer those questions for yourselves.
What can you do?
- Choose your products carefully - avoid products that use unnecessary or wasteful packaging. Less is more.
- Using the most professional manner, share with your friends on facebook and other social media sites your knowledge on better brands to buy and post your feedback on the product facebook page for any business that you are disappointed with by their decisions. Remember the more professional and factual you are the more they will sit up and listen.
- Nominate products for the unpackit awards and make sure you vote too!
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| Fresh milk (Image source) |
I recieved this feedback in another forum regarding this blog: Hi Francesca,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I took a minute to check out your blog. I did wonder about the recyclability of this bottle when it was first advertised and I googled it. Guess what, it said it was recyclable and that is enough convincing for alot of consumers.
I havn't fallen for the advertising so far and am happy to stick to what I know. In fact I think the "see through cows" on the tv adds a very misleading lol. I don't have a problem with the milk I currently buy so I have no need to change.
Thanks for your blog.
And also this: Thought you might be amused by the Tui billboard currently in Masterton:
Quick close the curtains the milk is out. Yeah Right.
It inspired me to write this in reply: Thanks for your posts - yes very amusing and from what I understand the particular company marketing this milk is apparently continuing to take serious flak. The bottle does indeed say 2 for recycling but from what I understand this doesn't mean it can or will be - because of the layering of plastics this makes it significantly more difficult and therefore costly. I haven;t purchased a bottle to actually test this but I do believe that it is likely to be heavier than a normal plastic milk bottle too so transport costs therefore increase as do disposale costs.
What I reckon is why couldn't we look at the idea of milk dispensers at the farm gate and consider having them at the supermarkt and we all bring a useable container in and refill..................yes H and S would ahve a field day but instead of letting that stop us why not work through those issues or better still bring back the milkman with a dispenser on his truck and we can walk to the gate when we sounds is "Mr Whippy" call and refill our milk bottles and pay. No tokens prob necessary now due to mobile EFTPOS. ANd of course the milkman would be driving a battery powered car too!
How good would all this be for communities too - meeting the neighbours out on the street while purchasing your milk. Maybe the neighbourhood milkman could also sell locally produced produce too?
And another post I recieved by email:
ReplyDeleteYes there is definitely options out there.
Your post reminded me of a poster competition I won when I was about 10 years old when they phased out the milkman and glass bottles in my home town. We had to do a promotional poster wanting to keep the glass milk bottle system. I think my nana still has the news paper clipping. At the time I didn't realise how significant that issue would become.
This is one topic I will keep following.