Clorox, too green for environmental stewardship?
By Stefanie Olsen
Last week I met Suzanne Thompson, vice president of research in Clorox’s cleaning division and the material scientist who helped lead development of the company’s new line of plant-based cleaning products, Green Works. She and I shared lunch at an environmental conference, so I took the opportunity to ask her how sales were going and if the company plans to “green” other Clorox products, i.e., change formulations for non-biodegradable or synthetic goods.
No, she replied, in answer to the question of transforming existing Clorox products. Consumers need goods like bleach for home sterilization purposes, Thompson said. What’s more, she said, the demand on natural resources like Palm oil or coconut extracts used to make Green Works (which is formulated from 99 percent plant- or mineral- based ingredients) can cause shifts or shortages in food markets, much like we’re seeing with corn crops related to ethanol production.
It’s an interesting argument, one that surely holds some truth. But it’s also a typically cautious argument for a traditional consumer-package-goods company that’s in the cross hairs of a new environmental movement. Case in point: the nonprofit Climate Counts just ranked Clorox the worst culprit on a list of household product makers for lagging efforts to reduce climate change.
The company could surely affect more dramatic shifts toward environmental responsibility, such as adopting renewable packaging and energy efficient practices for existing products. And that’s supposedly the idea behind Clorox’s new partnership with the environmental group the Sierra Club. But in the skeptics’ camp, what’s more likely happening is that Clorox is covering its bets with Green Works, catering to the eco-aware shoppers that now spend billions on green goods annually. And herein lies the dichotomy.
A “greener” Clorox—one that’s part environmental bad actor and part steward of natural goods—shows just how weird it’s getting for eco-conscious shoppers.
Do you reward an old school polluter’s efforts to sell a new earth friendly product or eschew all of its products? Do you buy simply based on the quality of the product, and forget the company attached? (Several eco-minded industry watchers have said that Green Works is made of high quality ingredients.) That’s what many eco-shoppers must ask themselves anew, especially as major conglomerates snatch up their favorite earth friendly brands.
Last month, for example, SC Johnson, maker of the mysteriously blue Windex window cleaner, bought Mrs. Meyers, creator of nontoxic, aromatherapy household cleaners.
In fact, Mrs. Meyers is the one brand that Thompson said she would use if she weren’t sold on Green Works, along with the rest of Clorox products. She should have a well-formed opinion, considering the company spent four years researching and developing the all-natural product line—with careful attention to formulation. (It’s hard to stabilize ingredients like lemon oil in a basic household cleanser without it smelling rancid in some concoctions, according to Thompson.)
As for sales, she said that Green Works is the new category killer in just less than six months, outselling brands like Seventh Generation and Mrs. Meyers. To be clear, it’s not eating into sales of rivals, but broadening the market of green home-cleanser sales, she said.
Why? “It works really well,” Thompson said.
You decide. That is, if you’re willing to buy a Clorox product. And if you have an opinion on the subject, please sound off.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:15 am
What I don’t get is why people need to use bleach in their home in the first place? I’ve managed to live pretty long without it. It’s toxic, nasty and pretty much unnecessary unless you’ve got some sort of small pox epidemic running through your home. You can use vinegar to clean a toilet and there are plenty of other alternatives to bleach when cleaning the laundry. Clorox makes green products simply because there’s a market for them. Some exec stood up at a meeting and said: We gotta get in on this whole green thing. So they made some products. The company won’t stop making the scary shit because half of America still uses it.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:10 am
I agree that the demand on natural resources like Palm oil or coconut extractscan cause shifts or shortages in food markets, much like we’re seeing with corn crops related to ethanol production. But where is the balance?