Sunday 31 August 2008

Greenwash #1: Innocent drinks


My Eco Self has a friend with a theory that Innocent Smoothies will go bust sometime soon. His theory is that there will be a public backlash against smoothies after reports have shown that smoothies can have more sugar than Coke.

I'm not convinced - I just went to the Innocent Fete and it was a pretty lavish spread - not the type you'd expect if you had a mean-fisted accountant in a suit* trying to steer a troubled company back on the staight and narrow.

Still, they have suffered from some bad press recently, with The Daily Telegraph accusing them of greenwash - trying to enhance their reputation by exaggerating their green credentials. They said their fruit always travels by boat or train, and is produced in the UK, whereas in reality it is driven across Europe in tanker lorries and is blended on the Continent.

Shame on them! I'm going to boycott their products**, even though I haven't bought an Innocent smoothie this year. Although I have spent over £100 on a pair of shoes on many occasions (in my previous full-time employed existence) I'm pretty reluctant to shell out over £2 for a smoothie.

*I don't think Innocent accountants wear suits somehow. I applied for a finance job there once (didn't even get an interview - I thought I had the perfect criteria - they like people with quirky hobbies etc and I'd just taken tightrope classes.) It sounded like a great place to work.

**Until next year's Fete, when I may again try and ingratiate myself to Food Neurotic Friend in the hope he takes me to the VIP area.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi there,

I wouldn't worry too much about the sugar content of smoothies. Sugar naturally occurs in fruit, so of course it's going to be there in a fruit smoothie.

This is just another example of sensational, contrdictory mainstream media keeping everyone jumping from one foot to another. One day we're too fat and eat too much fast food, another day we're being conned into drinking fruit drinks which have more sugar than Coke. Maybe their "experts" are on Coke's payroll? You can pretty much get some "expert" somewhere to say anything you want.

It's the same thing with the mainstream press and media and global warming. One article says "the ice caps are melting", then they drag out an "expert" who says there's nothing to worry about. Balanced reporting or deliberately creating confusion? If there's a debate about the validity of something, people are less likely to act (until everyone is agreed).

I like to make smoothies myself. They're fresher than anything you can buy anywhere. I know they contain sugar, but so does fruit. I know that the acid in orange or lemon juice isn't good for the enamel on my teeth, but have you ever seen what leaving a tooth (one which has fallen out naturally!) in a glass of Coke does if left overnight?