Consumers do not always have free choice Dadd and Carothers argue that the products available to consumers do not necessarily reflect consumer demand. If it is cheaper for a company not to recycle bottles, then they will not. They say that car companies push 'big cars with high compression, high-pollution engines on the American public' because they get the biggest profit from them, not because the public demands them. Moreover, consumers do not get to choose whether a retailer or manufacturer uses rail or road transport to transport their goods. Another example is given by Patricia Hynes (1991, p. 474). She argues that in the USA organic food products make up only 4 per cent of the market, although demand would easily be 5 to 10 per cent. She argues that government policies prevent farmers from giving up methods of farming that are highly dependent on agricultural chemicals. Ian Grayson argues that unnecessary consumption is often forced on people. Our systems of housing and transportation are often premised on private cars and small families. Those who prefer public transport are often severely inconvenienced or do not have a realistic choice about whether or not to buy and use a car.
Source: Sharon Beder, The Nature of Sustainable Development, 2nd edition, Scribe, Newham, Vic.,1996.  |
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