Sophie Sweatman

Consumers aren’t informed that unsold and returned goods end up in landfill Image by Dinh Khoi Nguyen from Pixabay

Hoarders and procrastinators unite. Perhaps we are the new green army. Have you wondered why you don’t throw things away or put things off? Perhaps it is because you want to increase your agency, save or make money and reduce influence from the consumer sector.

I have been thinking about how to sell my excess wardrobe, things I don’t wear anymore and other items I’ve accumulated, especially when I love selling. I did about 8 carboot sales this year but it isn’t a very efficient way of selling items.

Last night I watched Buy Now – The Shopping Conspiracy on Netflix. It revealed how global brands and retailers dispose of returned and unsold goods. These may even end up piled on the beaches of a developing country.

Have you wondered why there are islands of waste in the oceans and piles of shredded clothing covering miles of land in Africa and Asia? These are the by-products of aggressively sold and distributed fast moving consumer goods from toys to fashion, electrical equipment and accessories.

What the Buy Now documentary reveals, for the first time on mainstream media, is the extent to which global corporations hide their waste. Things that have been returned or not sold are often destroyed to prevent knock-offs cheapening the brand and sent to landfill or shipped abroad.

The quantity of this is astronomical. It can be seen from space. The impact on climate and pollution is significant enough fo the public, politicians and press to put our heads together to come up with a plan of action to defeat this.

What could a consumer do:

• Unsubscribe from Amazon
• Choose independent retailers who are transparent about end-of-life
• Buy loose or locally produced food, which doesn’t lie on packaging
• Avoid greenwashing, including paper bags and non-recyclable plastic packaging
• Sell-on unwanted purchases or use them as presents
• Use eBay and Vinted to sell on unwanted items and excess wardrobe
• Start a second-hand business helping hoarders find new homes for their treasured items

• Avoid buying new items online wherever possible
• Ignore Black Friday unless you needed the item anyway
• Don’t nag friends who hoard or procrastinate.
• Lobby politicians to be tough on consumerable waste
• Call your local press and gather stories about responsible retailers
• Feel proud for taking a stand against waste and finding a solution
• Seek out information about plastic recycling and retailers using recycled plastic

The media is full of a negative stories but people will always be inspired by ‘Triumph over tragedy’ (TOT). This could include small, local businesses setting a good example or stories of a retailer who took a stand against wastefulness and found ways to deal with end-of-life consumerables.

We need to challenge rules, which drop the onus on the end-user and consumer and shine the light on the producer, retailer and distributor. 15 minute cities and low emission zones all restrict the lives of the public and enable corporations to continue their crimes against our entire existence in secret without public knowledge.

We all see the piles of waste and know it isn’t someone or even a city of people finishing their snack and littering the packet. The waste is excess consumer products, which never even made it to market.

We need to call for an end to this environmental distruction and narcissistic deflection and demand sufficient corporate responsibility. Only then can the borrowers, hoarders and procastinators of the world release themselves from the prisons they don’t even know they are in: trying to save earth by not adding to consumerism and waste.

If things can’t be sold, perhaps they could be given away for re-use, to be upcycled, to homeless people, local independent retailers or charity shops or sent to people displaced by conflict in refugee camps.

What is producers were fined for producing too much? If the raised finances went back to the factories who make the goods, to be used for recycling and use waste for new products? This would get global brands to stop over-producing and mean they need to share sales levels to make orders for new lines.