An Addendum To The Story of Stuff

September 12, 2008 by Curt Siters

With all the talk these days about reduce, reuse, repurpose and recycle all the focus seems to be on the end user (also know as the consumer.) It revolves around how much we throw away when we purchase a product and what happens at the end of the products’ life cycle and the amount of embedded energy (energy used to make and transport the product.)

There are other things to take into consideration as well that no one seems to have accounted for. Things that the producers, and with the help of the transporters, can do to reduce the amount of materials required to get products to consumers.

If you haven't seen the "Story of Stuff" yet you should. It is a great watch! Even from a technical point of view (regarding the production.) You can watch it at the end of this article.

Shipping Cartons and Packing Material

I have a friend who works at a smaller national high end retailer who has told me about all the packaging that goes in to just shipping a product that the consumer never sees. He told me that a lot of the product comes wrapped in three to four layers. He also told me that those products are shipped from overseas - mostly Europe.

The cardboard is separated from the packing material - if the packing material isn’t cardboard. The packing material is then lumped in with the other trash and thrown away.

This got me thinking that of course we don’t see it as it is all hidden. The goods are processed mostly in a back room and all the packaging is taken to dumpsters that are also hidden from view. The dumpsters are emptied late at night or early in the morning when no one is around to see.

The producers, and distributors, can put pressure on the carriers to slow down the trucks on the highways. I’m sure you’ve seen them flying past you with the trailers bouncing around. The extra material is required to help prevent breakage.

What if we allowed the truck drivers to be not so pressed that they fly down the road to get things to market? The roads aren’t in that bad of shape (yet.) The need for packing material could be significantly reduced.

What happens when you return a product?

It all depends upon the manufacturer, the price of the item and the profit margin. But apparently about half of what gets returned gets thrown away - that’s right. If you take it home, wear something for a day and return it because it doesn’t fit quite right after all, it gets thrown away because by law (and for health reasons) it cannot be resold. This happens for products such as teapots. If you use it and it gets chipped or scratched, most businesses will exchange it or do a refund. Guess what? Yup, it gets thrown away.

The solution is simple: most areas have programs to help those in need. Why not get Congress to change the law to allow items to be cleaned and donated to those in need (which, by the way, includes more and more people everyday.)

What about dining out?

Remember when mothers told their children to clean their plate? It used to mean “eat it so you can stay healthy.” Today, however, it should mean “eat it or take it home so it doesn’t add to the land fills, or, don’t get it in the first place.”

I have another friend that works in a theater that shows movies while you eat and she told me that just about every night they fill about a fifty-five gallon drum (for approximately 50 people) with food waste and napkins and such. She told me this happens in the off season. It does not include the food waste that goes into preparing the food you are eating either. It also doesn’t include food that doesn’t get sold and must be thrown away. I’m sure most restaurants try to limit this due to money lost on unsold food.

As consumers the citizens of the United States generate a lot of waste. The industries that promote and feed this consumption, by necessity, must generate a lot of waste as well. Do you, or someone you know, work in an industry that produces waste that is hidden from the consumer?

Other things

I’ve noticed recently that when you buy boxed goods the boxes seem to be very slippery. I asked my friend at the retailer about this and he agreed and was concerned about this. He told me that it is very difficult to carry stacks of things as they want to slide and fall off, potentially damaging or destroying whatever it is they contain.

Thinking about the “Story of Stuff” I am just wondering if the manufacturers have found the limit to how quickly the can have something break without losing the faith of the customers. I wonder if this is a new approach to getting things to break where the consumer will have to buy the product again.

You see, if there is a manufacturer defect retailers (or the manufacturer) will replace it within a certain timeframe. If you are not satisfied with the product, again it will be replaced. However, if you break it (such as drop it) you may not be able to get it replaced and, therefore, have to buy another one..

The thing is with this new coating on the boxes you can hold on to it easily, but place another box on top and it slides easily. Go ahead, the next time you go shopping pick up a couple of boxes. See how easy they are to hold on to. Next, stack one on top of the other and gently push. See how easily they slide?

I can think of no logical reason to have a coating like this.