Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Discussion: The Limits of Eco-shopping
Food politics not only reflects how commodity choices are politicized, but it also repre-
sents a particular way of problematizing consumption and consumerism. The paradigm
of consumerism is being increasingly challenged by voices that highlight the ecological
and social externalities of consumer capitalism. As a result, an eco-shopping perspec-
tive has arisen as the hegemonic mode of conceptualizing eco-social change through
consumption. The eco-shopping quadrant of our typology is exemplified by consumer
attempts to substitute foods perceived as harmful (e.g., non-certified-organic, industri-
ally produced) with goods that have some sort of ecological credentials (e.g., organic,
natural, local). Within an eco-shopping perspective, there is considerable optimism
for a model of commodity substitutionism where existing consumer patterns are
tweaked to incorporate less harmful commodities. Though some interviewees ques-
tioned the win-win scenarios of eco-shopping, they tended to do so alongside confes-
sional accounts of conventional shopping practices (e.g., people who noted problems
with big-box grocery stores, but also acknowledged that other factors ultimately influ-
enced their decision to shop at these stores). An ecological citizenship perspective is
more skeptical of consumerism as a model for social change, and critical of its role per-
petuating ecological degradation and social injustices. Rather than smooth over poten-
tial tensions between consumerism and citizenship, ecological citizenship highlights
contradictions and focuses on finding ways to realign personal consumption practices
with political principles. Looking at food politics from this quadrant, multiple aspects of
food commodity chains are problematized, and new, less corporate, and less commodi-
fied forms of producing and consuming food are envisioned and practiced.
As much as the eco-shopping model of commodity substitutionism has flourished
in recent years, key elements of the corporate-industrial food system have not signifi-
cantly changed. Corporate agribusiness has adapted rapidly to changing consumer
preferences, such that “green,” “fair trade” and “organic” goods now appear on the shelf
alongside conventional commodities. The world's largest agri-food corporations now
have organic brands and carry fair-trade varieties of chocolate, tea, and coffee, but even
these commodities are distributed through complex and global commodity chains that
are not transparent to the consumer. Boutique shops are now filled with luxury goods
that “embrace the idea that being environmentally caring doesn't mean denying, aban-
doning or refusing the things we love, but rather designing, developing and using prod-
ucts in more informed, eco-friendly ways” (
http://www.epistachio.com/ourMission.
html)
. That consumption can be expanded and yet remain sustainable is congruent with
the eco-shopping perspective, yet it contrasts with themes of decommodification and
dematerialization emphasized by ecological citizenship perspectives.
While the eco-shopping standpoint has brought food politics to the fore in the public
imagination, we identify three problematic tendencies with this perspective. In this way,
we link the consumer meanings underlying food politics (mapped out in our typology)
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