Listening to the People

The power of corporations in America is often a hotly debated topic. Often large companies can influence the way we live more than the government does. And sometimes due their capitalist nature the large companies even listen to the people. A recent Wall Street Journal article explored the bottled water phenomena and how corporate behomoths Coke and Pepsi are responding to the backlash from the media and consumers against plastic. The bottlers are using more recycled plastic, redesigning bottles to use less plastic and throwing their weight behind recycling programs. The weight of a half liter bottle has been reduced approximately 8 grams. Which adds up to a lot when you're selling and shipping millions of bottles. I would think a weight reduction like that would have a significant impact on reducing the fuel needed for shipping. Like a lot of other programs reducing plastic makes good business sense and good environmental sense. It's typical company speak of the sort learned in a marketing class when Coke's director of sustainable packaging says "Our vision is to no longer have our packaging viewed as waste but as a resource for future use". However that's how companies operate, they make a vision statement and laugh all you want he's got the right idea. It's good to see something postive coming out of corporate America as it usually gets a bum rap. One of the best things about America is the power of the private sector to initiate change. More Americans vote with their wallets than vote on election day. Companies like Coke and Pepsi didn't get where they are by ignoring the people.