Greenwashing: A Fiji Water Story

In this environmental video essay, I take a quick look at greenwashing using Fiji Water's marketing campaign as a case study. I explore why green products are not necessarily as eco-friendly as their packaging suggests.

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Resources:
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Music:
Here's the Thing by Lee Rosevere

[lani]

I have lived in Fiji all my life. If you go to any public area, especially beaches, you can find mounds of rubbish that people dump and litter scattered here and there. Much of this rubbish is plastic and you'll always find a Fiji water bottle, or two, or ten. Our local television doesn't have any of their ads and this green marketing campaign is barely present anywhere locally. I think it's crazy how overseas they portray this image when here at home our environment is getting more polluted by the day and there are so many people who still don't have access to clean water. Just another case of a company catering to the developed world while not caring too much for the livelihood of the people on whose land their factories sit.

[gracelm]

“One of the greenest things to do is to buy fewer things” I cannot stress this enough!! Society nowadays is obsessed with spending and we buy stuff we don’t need creating more waste. Do what you can, shop at thrift stores, drink tap water, buy local vegetables. Reduce, reuse, recycle everyone tries to recycle but forgets the first two steps!

[lilik]

I live in Tasmania (Aus), and they just passed a law where all single-use plastics are now illegal!!! I'm so proud of this state

[claymountain]

Isn't "untouched by man" inherently a paradoxical claim? Since the company had to "touch" nature to get the water.

[vectoredthrust]

“Bottled at the source, untouched by man”

Unless they’ve trained some forest critters in the design, siting and operations of a groundwater extraction and bottling plant, that’s already a gigantic contradiction

[ropatevuta]

Yes please keep posting this...Im from Fiji living in Australia and whenever I go there, the land looks so depressing as well as the water not being top quality.

[rae]

People dont buy Fiji water because its "artisan", they buy it because of the aesthetically pleasing packaging.

[Joe]

“Cage free” could mean no cages but could still mean “crowded in warehouses”

[nathan]

lol I'm living in Fiji but from Australia and Fiji water isn't owned by Fiji or a Fijian but a Canadian business man and it doesn't contribute to the economy either.

[matiasreyes]

In Australia, massive supermarket Coles don't sell plastic bags anymore, but at the same time they now produce little plastic toys 1000 times less biodegradable...

[AnimilesYT]

"Bottled at the source. Untouched by man."
I'm rather curious as to what kind of magic they're using. How can they bottle it at the source without touching anything? Did they enslave Katara?

[riana]

Brands: claim to be green
Also brands: wrap products in excessive plastic

[technojunkie]

This is depressing and basically reminds me of that one part of The Good Place where we're all doomed because trying to make "good choices" seem futile because the structures in place make it nearly impossible to do so

[espressonoob]

why is it so hard for people not to just buy water filters (in the u.s at least). it's much cheaper and doesn't create anywhere near as much waste lol

[kmyh]

Fiji is definitely paradigm of greenwashing. But this video makes some sweeping generalizations on green marketing. Indeed, buying fewer things is inherently a more sustainable choice, but when people must buy products why not choose one that is more sustainable than its counterparts? Such decisions by consumers show companies that it's worth investing in these markets, which then tends to open other markets for sustainable goods through acquisitions and investments (ex. Colgate acquires Tom's of Maine, and Clorox acquires Burt's Bees). I agree that not all sustainable/green products are actually better or genuine; many companies are just trying to capitalize on a trend. But for those that are, give those companies credit for changing their business models, beginning to address climate change, and/or prioritizing sustainability into their businesses.

[BltchErica]

I never thought of Fiji as a green company, I just thought of it as a company with very fancy mountain water that costs a lot to transport.

[SylveonGirl]

To back up The Body Shops hemp cream, they have been practicing sustainability in there products ever since they opened. From having ethical farms, to never testing on animals, even going as far to as making petitions to ban animal testing in Canada. Also the cream it's made from is green. So it cant really be considered as greenwashing. There are no false claims on being eco-friendly on that packaging

[jonathandpg]

Ok so there is a issue with something you said.

Organic does not reduce our industrial footprint....it increases it. It's a good example of greenwashing. They use catch phrases and terms to make you believe it's a greener choice when in reality, it isn't.

[sweeteststar]

The other day I saw something that said “made with real food” and all I could think was .... how bloody sad is that? That so much of our food nowadays is processed to a point of no return, that when someone is made with real ingredients it has to be advertised. Shouldn’t ALL food be made with real ingredients ?? Lol I hate the food industry.

[MrHarvinder]

Great vid! Studying marketing and advertising, hearing about greenwashing for the first time. Interesting concept!