I was watching a documentary called “The Corporation” recently. It made me realize, I don’t think we stop to think about the strides we’ve made in how we conduct business and the growing development of socially responsible behavior. Sure, there’s progress to be made, but we’ve come a long way!

How important is social responsibility and what’s the impact? Let’s look at some examples of how the word “corporation” has become so tainted:

1) Let’s look at the petrochemical era, year 1940, when the discovery of synthetic chemicals was made – that new chemicals could be fabricated at an unlimited scale out of the petroleum molecule. For pretty cheap, too. For example, pesticides, like DDT, which was dusted on people to stand typhus. It wasn’t until years later, after large amounts of data could be accumulated and studied, this era was recognized for its effects: cancer, birth defects, etc . Do you think the companies knew all along?

2) Then, rBGH, an artificial growth hormone injected in cows. It’s known to cause disease in cows, which in turn causes increased bacteria in milk – humans consume antibiotics through milk, creating resistance… all for short-term profits.

3) Sweatshops.

4) Not as dramatic as the previous examples, but I need to add Greek yoghurt (aka strained yoghurt) to this list! It’s marketed as a thicker yoghurt and more expensive than the regular stuff. For those who don’t know their yoghurts as well, as per our friends from Wikipedia, Greek yoghurt is:

“yoghurt which has been strained in a cloth or paper bag or filter to remove the whey, giving a consistency between that of yoghurt and cheese, while preserving yoghurt’s distinctive sour taste. Like many yoghurts, strained yoghurt is often made from milk which has been enriched by boiling off some of the water content, or by adding extra butterfat and powdered milk.”

When you read the ingredients label on most Greek yoghurts in the grocery store, you’ll notice that almost all of the top brands add corn starch, which is a thickening agent. So, you’re actually buying normal yoghurt, which has had a bunch of things added to it,like the corn starch. The marketing of the products implies differently, resulting in implied health benefits which may actually be false – the added ingredients may even cause more harm than good! I would classify deceptive business activities like this as socially irresponsible.
In today’s world, the good news is, consumers now have the power to educate themselves, which has had great impact on the developments we see. It’s really not that hard to gather info either. You don’t need to be an early adopter, or pinning on Pinterest to know the brands you bring home and what you’re consuming.

To be fair, I also think that “corporations” have made enormous stride in improving how they conduct business. Young business leaders have the knowledge and education that may not have been available decades ago. Back when I was a student, the commerce program in which I as enrolled included a required class on social responsibility.

A thought I’d like to leave you with:

At the end of the documentary, CEO of interface, a carpet company who changed how they did business once they were made aware of the harmful environmental effects they were having, raised a thought, “Some products can be made more sustainably. Those that can’t, maybe they shouldn’t be made at all.”

Copyright © Esha Abrol. Canada. April 2012