It’s the “for a limited time only, I will not kill you” for me 🤣🤣🤣. I love this kind of content. I must admit sometimes I get off track of why I had a lifestyle change to become a conscious consumer. And girl, your content is a great reminder of my ‘why’s’. Thank you 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
I live near a primark and happened to be in there a few months back, and noticed that they has these beautifully packaged lounge sets in the typical "eco brand" natural colour scheme. Got really excited as it was in a little section for sustainable products... oh no. Not even recycled cotton. Not even organic cotton. PLANT BASED INK. THAT WAS ALL... there was no writing on the clothing, so I assume they LITERALLY MEANT THE LABEL. WHAT?! Some of the worst greenwashing I've ever seen!
My thoughts on vegan fast food are, that it’s really great to have real options now when you’re out and about with friends etc. Before that, being the vegetarian or vegan of the group meant eating a sad portion of Pommes or a salad when everyone was enjoying their real meal. Therefore That was the idea many people had, what eating vegan must look like, salads. Which is not very convincing in terms of taste and convenience obviously, so showing that it’s as easy and convenient eating vegan now (at fast food places) is a very good thing imo.
The problem for myself: The second hand shops are overfilled with shein and so on. I dont want to buy this cheap made stuff because it doesnt last long. But often online you can't tell where its come from.
I don't think I'd put vegan fast food in the same greenwashing category as fast fashion. The fast food chains aren't pretending they're being ethical or sustainable by offering vegan choices, it's simply a choice driven by customer demand. Where fashion are just hiding behind the sustainable buzzwords as you say. It's also much harder for fast food to clean up their supply chain, as there would (sadly) be massive customer backlash if meat was removed. Where fashion could move to a truly ethical and sustainable model and the only impact on the customer would be the price.
I'm not vegan but I like trying vegan options. With my job I travel a lot and eating out constantly is something I had to do otherwise I don't eat. I appreciate these vegan options and the normalization of them. I also agree with you, thank you for looking at these issues from different perspectives and talking about them at length.
While, I do see where you're coming from, I have a slightly different take on the fast food thing. For the most part, people tend to eat out with others, so if your friends(or whoever you're eating out with) aren't vegan then the more places that have a vegan option, the easier it is to find a place everyone can agree on. Just like suggesting people only go to vegan only restaurants is not going to go down well with non-vegans.
My ex-boyfriend didn't like me being a vegetarian and would constantly take me to places where I couldn't order anything. I lived off baked potatoes and sad salads at fast food places. I would have loved having these new options available to me back then.
That’s a good point. Now I am so lucky that even the friends I have that aren’t vegetarian or vegan are so curious and willing to try vegan foods with me, so it can be easy to forget that that’s not the case for everybody, some people struggle a lot more with being vegan in their social lives, and low key those people are heroes for staying on track 🌿💚
Yah I’ve never perceived the addition of vegan options to a menu as a greenwashing campaign, I always saw it was trying to expand their consumer base aka siphon money out of as many consumers as possible (by expanding the menu to include vegan consumers)
I'm really hopeful that the more normal it becomes to have to greenwash in order to attract customers, it will then become more normal for customers to be more skeptical and wary about the labels, which will ultimately result in companies actually having to be transparent and sustainable. Like you said, it's going to be a long process, but fingers crossed this is a speedy start to that process! Thank you so much for helping educate on these important issues!
Thank you for that info and pointing out how the wording misleads the consumer. It happens all the time, and awareness hopefully shines light on a rather deceptive plot
Informative and engaging as always, Gittemary! Thank you for what you do! Would also love to hear your take specifically on PETA and Greenpeace. And also on online petitions.
I wish the big companies would just help to pay to give us access to recycling. We have hardly any recycling here. We're SO far behind in my area and I'm in a capital US city... Its the bare minimum and we have almost no recycling. only #1 plastics and cardboard. Not glass. Not any other plastic. Not even metals. Eurgh.
Love the content!! Was wondering if you could do a video on where to start in finding more sustainable clothing and alternatives to the likes of Amazon when it comes to new books, music etc. Because while a lot can be found in thrift shops supporting more sustainable products and different business models is also necessary but it's quite hard to sort through all the green washing
I am really torn about greenwashing in general. On one hand I think it is great that it normalises caring about the environment and that it confronts people with having to make the choice to be more sustainable at every turn. I also think it could be a "gateway drug" to actual sustaibablity, so to speak, when the algorithms realize a person gravitates towards green products and recomends more and more sustainable content (at least I got into sustaibablity in a similar way). And while the impact of green wahsed products in only minuscule it's still better than nothing. I also think it's great that there is enough of a demand for sustainable products that the big companies need to respond to it. However, it makes me absolutly, bloody mad that it's all just a big scam. Especially since it's really hard to tell whether something is greenwashing or actually sustainable.
May I be kinda happy about Greenwashing? It proves there is a demand for green/ethical products growing. A demand big enough that producers have to answer that. Ok, they answered with marketing, buzzwords, smoke and mirrors, token measures - which is bad. But still, there is a market for true green thing.
I get that you're optimistic, but the reality is people just wanna keep being mindless consumers without feeling guilty. So they look for 'ethical, green, eco' label so when they buy more stuff that they don't need, they don't feel bad about it..
@@almamater489 yeah, but it is useful. It's a market. Every product have to compete, every product need to be "more guilty-free than others" to sell, adding every time a bit more of real action to the babbling. It raised the stake.
Loved this video! It’s really important to keep these messages about greenwashing coming. Education is power and it is clear that sustainable practices are what we consumers need to continue to ask and push for with companies . I think they are listening but we need to hold them accountable. Like you, I basically only buy thrifted or secondhand items. I also support small, local businesses in my neighbourhood. Thanks for the valuable work you do! 💚💚💚👍
About plant based fast food - before I went vegan it was kinda our little family tradition to go to the Burger King every time we come to the city ( which is rare), my little boy loves his cheeseburgers and I enjoyed the whopper. Plus it’s very affordable to feed the family there really quick when you are running errands. So when I decided to go vegan I was very happy that there is a plant based whopper and we can still keep the tradition. Cause let’s be honest to take a family to the specialized vegan restaurant would cost at list double of what we pay at Burger King. So I look at it as the positive thing - it should motivate more people to go vegan and not to worry to never taste their favorite burger.
I have a lot of problems because I am oversize and is ridiculous to try to find good fit and good sizes out of the fast fashion. Trousers is becoming seriously traumatic: shein is size trustworthy and I don't need to be called fat in shops. I totally agree with you but this is an issue that needs to be addressed. I passed 3 months looking for a pair of jeans that fit me that was inside my budget and nothing until I order one in shein. I passed 3 days with anxiety because I have done it but I didn't find any other place.
I just don't get why Coca-Cola Cola could not use glass bottles again where you pay a fee that you get back when you return it to the supermarket, and then these are reused? I mean they used to have glass only...
Probably because what they care most about is cutting their costs. Plastic is way cheaper than glass to acquire. It's also much less heavy than glass, reducing the cost of transporting the bottles. They don't have to pay for the collection system of used glass bottles, or the sanitization process. They probably did the math and saw that even when charging consumers a fee for glass, plastic is still cheaper. And they dgaf about the environment, so they will keep the plastic.
Awesome video Gittemary! I’ve been on a no spend challenge since January 2020 so definitely no take out food. I consider most take out food frankenfood whether it’s vegan or not. Stay awesome dear one!!
I think the case of fast food corporations replacing animal based products with plant based is different from clothing companies. People will not really notice a difference between clothes made ethically and sustainably, and clothes that are not. They will notice if their favorite animal based product is now changed irreversibly to a plant based alternative. I see the idea of them adding vegan options as a chance for the masses to try vegan food at an easily accessible location that they already frequent.
I agree with what you said about vegan fast food, it it basically just an addition to their other products, however I have to admit, I've always been a fast food lover, but I stopped going to McDonalds because they don't have vegan options (in my country at least), but I buy the plant based whopper from Burger King at least once a month. I think if we would never buy from these big corporations, their conclusion would be that there's no demand for vegan food. Also, as you said, it's good that the availability of vegan food in big chains somehow normalizes having vegan food even for non vegans every once in a while.
I would disagree with the idea that our purchases of vegan menu items don't affect the practices of those businesses if they are otherwise non-vegan. Whether or not enough people buy a plant-based menu item determines whether that item even stays on the menu. Multiple fast food chains have dropped their plant-based options because of lack of demand. And I personally know people who have consumed the plant-based item just out of curiosity or felt like getting something different every now and then who would have otherwise bought a meat menu item. That is one less meat menu item consumed every time that happens. I also know people who have drastically reduced their meat intake in general once they realized that the plant-based alternative is actually tasty. Having the option at McDonald's or KFC may be what first gets people's foot through that door. I don't really see how we can't see that as a net benefit.
I saw other parents on my Facebook talking about how they are shocked that they find toxic chemicals on childrens clothing from shein and other similar places. I’m over here like 💀
I would love to see you work with any (but actually every) company that you talk about in these video's, so you could all change it around to fair and good stuff!
We went to H&M this weekend cause my bfs family memebers son has a bday and wanted a specific shirt and I couldn't find it in any thrift store. And let me tell you I was fuming in there. All the green washing! How dare they. My bf had to say "ok ok calm down and go out" cause I kept pointing at signs and going "they are puting lies on their clothes, look at this!!" I was so mad! But it wasn't for me, this is for a kid I kept telling my self to let it to. Blah. Sorry. Now I going to watch this video. Ok watched it now. As far as vegan fast food goes..I am not vegan, I have celiac and many many food alergies so my choice is very limited. (One of the things I am higly alergis is mushrooms so..) I did order a gluten free beyond burger and I got a very bad response and was told that is not possible. I can't figure it out cause Beyond burger is also gluten free so ?? I think for vegans there should be an option on the menu, why exclude anyone. I do however agree that it goes in the same place as all their revenous. It's a slippery slope. But I am way to specific and a minority in the way I have to eat. So I don't think I should have a say.
@@Gittemary and people walk around like zombies and shop and think "ohh organic cotton, I did good" nooo Linda! I had to educate my mom when she proudly said that she bought from their concious line. But she wouldn't listen. Oh sometimes it is so hard to advocate cause boomers have their own ways.
I have celiac and am vegan, so I also have quite limited food choices when I go out! So I really agree with you that it’s important for big food chains to include different foods, because if McDonalds have a gluten-free vegan burger then I know I can get something to eat basically no matter where I am :)
@@bookishdaydreams4993 oo hello fellow celiac:) where I live mcdonalds has notthing even remotly gluten free. And also I can't eat in most restaurants cause they don't understand either all the possible foods that can contain gluten ( I mean spices wtf) and contamination is a foren term for them. So the few ones that I can eat at I am so grateful for any item I can have. Cause it is so depressing going out with friends to eat and them just watching them eat.-_-
i've got something even crazier: several weeks ago i was walking past a gas station and they had a banner there with a contest or some kind of promo or idk and they were offering reusable, sustainable drinking bottles/thermos thingies as prizes 😂😂😂😂 at a f. gas station. for buying petrol.
I'm what I'd call an 'opportunistic vegetarian' meaning if I go some where with a vegan / vegetarian option I will get it but if not I will eat meat when I have to. Restaurants having these options mean I can make those vegan/ vegetarian choices more often.
The Mega Corp lexicon: Sustainability refers to sustaining our profit margins Plant based foods: will suggest superior quality products but they will still be made in the same way as conventional products in our ranges, I.e with GM soya and corn and preservatives Planning for the future: This means covering ourselves with as many green fig leaves as we can to try to ward off government legislation requiring real and costly change. Changing the way we do things: Means a big increase in press releases and advertising to exploit current preoccupations.
The problem with the McPlant (at least in the Netherlands) is that it is marketed as a vegan option. However they added cheddar cheese. And in very tiny letters they stated that the McPlant is not necessarily vegan or even vegetarian certified, it is ideal for the flexitarian...
For me personally, I try to be vegan more for the ethical side of things as opposed to the environmental side of things so I’m mostly for the vegan fast food situation especially as you say it is a way of normalising vegan food. However because of all the other reasons, I try to limit how much I consume because I don’t want to massively support those businesses. But sometimes ya gurl just needs a Maccies 😂
I know it's better to not give your money to those big companies, but I also tried the McPlant Burger and it tastes like real meat, imo. Nevertheless, I heard that the mayonnaise (and bun?) isn't vegan (in Austria), so McPLANT is quite misleading... cause it's not vegan but vegetarian...😩 I made a less buy year and I am now on a no buy year and I've never bought a thing from Shein (I guess it's called Ultra-Fast-Fashion?). The last two years I only used what I have and if something can't be mend I replace it from Secondhand Fashion. And til now it really worked well. 👗👚👍🏻
I definitely support vegan options becoming more mainstream and available. And I'm always really excited to try something new but there's just some companies that I don't want to support. I'm fortunate enough to live in an area where I have a few vegan restaurants that can make copycat versions.
Bare minimum would be that sustainable brands produce clothes that look cute AND are in big sizes. If you wear big sizes you can't find anything second hand and you can't find anything sustainable. Like I would even pay big money but there is nothing out there that fits my size and style. Shein is currently the only brand that covers those two. Points for me. And it makes me furious tbh. I don't want to support that but I also don't want to walk around feeling uncomfortable in my clothes.
Shelbi does at her channel recommend more sustainable clothing brands that are size inclusive. Check her out :) She has some kind of ranking system going.
I'm glad that you made this video, but I did have some reservations about your thoughts on fast-food chains incorporating plant-based options. You mentioned that it maintains the inaccessible white veganism trope, but then go on to say that we should prefer to support all-vegan restaurants and cooking at home. I agree that this is a better choice, but I think you contradicted yourself here. I don't eat at these fast food restaurants often, but I think we should view this as making plant-based food MORE accessible. For those whose lifestyle already includes fast food (many lower income people) this could be the easiest way for them to eat less animal products. Love that this discussing is happening, just food for thought!
Yeah as I also said, my thoughts on this are not all in complete alignment, and I can see the logic on both sides 😅 this is in many ways one of those things where I don’t think there is just one right answer, or one thing that is universally more true than the other, there are pros and cons and consequences to both ways of looking at it
I'm not vegan (tried being a vegetarian, but because I have IBS and can't eat beans, I didn't get enough protein and got sick after a full year as a vegetarian). But I don't like the big burger chains either. This Christmas we had to drive for 8 hours with a 5 months old, so we stopped at a lot of McDonald's and Burger Kings to change his diaper (I tell you, their changing facilities were pretty decent 👌), but I'm a snacking girl. So you know... A burger or two went down - and everytime I got hungry pretty quick afterwards 🤷♀️ what is up with that?! So I guess I would also rather go for a REAL burger 😅🙈 not the McDonald's or Burger King burgers, sorry not sorry🤷♀️
I agree with most of the points, however I'd say the big difference in addition green washing between fast food and fast fashion is that atleast food is consumable 🤷🏻♀️ I definitely think these are all interesting points but it's a hard balence to achieve
For me, there's a small difference between vegan food at fast food places, and fast fashion. Basically, food is a need that people will consume every day. Most people will eat roughly the same amount of energy no matter the source. So producing C02/waste/pollution is inevitable. There's no real way to boycott food, short of growing it yourself, and there's no way of getting food second hand (unless you're freegan/dumpster diving, but that isn't accessible/legal/feasible on a large scale) or of reducing your food needs. On the other hand, we have massively overstuffed wardrobes, a source of second hand clothing so vast that a lot of it will end up in landfill, and while I get how clothing can be important and a source of self expression, the level of self expression we demand from our clothing is a luxury that humans have gone without pretty much until the industrial revolution (like, yes people would express things, sometimes extravagantly, through their clothes, but they would usually only have a handful of outfits to chose from in their day to day, and those clothes would then last decades, rather than people changing styles and aethetics every couple years and having countless outfits to choose from every day). So basically, imo, fast fashion greenwashing is saying, 'here, buy this thing that is not a basic necessity to add to an already workable wardrobe, for you comfort/pleasure/aethetic enjoyment' (there are exceptions to this of course but that's the the case for the majority of the people targeted by these brands) while fast food is saying 'here's an option for consuming calories that you would have had to consume regardless'. And in that situation, I can get behind vegan food in fast food. I won't celebrate the brands for it or congratulate them or anything, but I won't hesitate to go eat there and I'll still feel like it's a net positive for the environment. From a marketer's standpoint, you could conceivably aim for everybody to own 20% more (or even more still) clothing than they do now. But you can't realistically aim for everybody to eat 20% more food. One type of consuming is potentially infinitly expandable, while our apetites for food are not - we eat better than we used to, but not that significantly more, jsut differently. So fast fashion has to create new needs, while fast food is fighting (with supermarkets, bakeries, other restaurants, etc) for a bigger share of an exisiting market. At least that's my opinion, and I'd love to hear any thoughts about this!
Are those new tattoos on your face, the dots under your eyes? Can you explain the dots? I've noticed you have them on your fingertips and your palm - what do they signify to you?
Ooooh my goodness, Gitte! Just listen to what's said at the end of this video from Business Insider about that H&M recycling machine... you've probably watched it before, but it reminded me of this green washing rant of yours. 🤦😳 ruclips.net/video/obO1PKfXGpQ/видео.html
I understand the reasoning you has for the vegan fast food. However I am an ethical vegan and I guess i see it as a step in the right direction. Because if in the future more people opt for the vegan version at a fast food restaurant they might take some meat options down and that would mean less animals are being killed. That’s not the case now, but I am hoping it could be like that in the future.
Plant-based for the environment. Veganism is an ethical stance against the exploitation of animals. Also, I disagree that big brands creating plant-based products doesn't make a change. It puts the idea out there that we don't need to exploit animals for a "tasty" snack. Maybe it doesn't work for the environment as much as you wanted it to but that doesn't mean that it doesn't make a difference. Even if the company itself doesn't particularly care about that difference.
I would not buy Coca cola, even if it were legitimately sustainable (which it sure as hell ain't!!!) because the product itself is sooooooo bad for humans to consume! So that's surely another thing to consider a good reason to boycott their company. ;) Also, I would not get any food from McDonald's or similar fast food places, because their regular food is so highly processed, it is really no longer food, and I don't imagine their vegan items are much different. I saw a video once on how chicken mcnuggets are made and it nearly made me sick; it was so gross!
Please support brands coming out with vegan options because we need to tell these brand this is what we want more of. So many people say don’t support it but we shouldn’t do that and it makes it less of a reason for these brands to even give a dam about supporting veganism. I think your view point is just wrong about this because if more people go with the vegan option and keep saying this what we want that gives them a reason to keep coming out with vegan options and it’s in their favor because they’re still making money. I agree with support small vegan businesses but showing the big corporations we want change is even better.
Ok, legimate question. Why don't RUclipsrs even say the word pandemic? I've noticed most of the RUclips content creator I watch have cute euphemisms like "panini" "pamimi' etc. Is this just cause no one wants to focus on the pandemic? Or does RUclips have bots trolling for the word pandemic? Honestly curious.
It is not that I don’t want to focus on it - I have also made several vlogs from lockdown as well, but those videos where I mention it correctly get demonitised which will severely hurt my engagement and reach
Wait...SHEINCares?..like Primark Cares?? Did Shein or Primark copy even the name of the misleading greenwashing campaigns from the other? 😂 the more I learn about fast fashion companies, the more I have to laugh...
So you rather that fast food wont have any options? The ideia is for people to make the switch. No company is going to stop making money just because ... people would simply not buy there any more. Supply and demand. Here on my country burguer king louched 3 products in the same year! And i used to work at McDonald's and i saw their vegetarian burguer increse on comsuption. So that is sending the message that people want that. So hoppefuly they will be lounching more options. The companies make the product but Consumers have to choose it over the other one and maybe they will enventually take the meat option out of the menu once people start opting for the vegetarian or vegan option. Many of the people that eat the vegetarian stuff at those places arent even vegan or vegetarian and really cool if you ask me having the oportunity to present that to a meat eater. Thats the way i see it.
![Method Writing: The First Four Concepts - Jack Grapes [FULL INTERVIEW]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ba9jAVzADY0/mqdefault.jpg)
You’re seriously my favorite person to watch. Slapping down those facts and calling out the villains. Thank you for the endlessly entertaining content
Aw thank you so much for the support ✨
It’s the
“for a limited time only, I will not kill you”
for me 🤣🤣🤣.
I love this kind of content. I must admit sometimes I get off track of why I had a lifestyle change to become a conscious consumer. And girl, your content is a great reminder of my ‘why’s’.
Thank you 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
This is my type of 🍵 tell it all gurl!!!
I live near a primark and happened to be in there a few months back, and noticed that they has these beautifully packaged lounge sets in the typical "eco brand" natural colour scheme. Got really excited as it was in a little section for sustainable products... oh no. Not even recycled cotton. Not even organic cotton. PLANT BASED INK. THAT WAS ALL... there was no writing on the clothing, so I assume they LITERALLY MEANT THE LABEL. WHAT?! Some of the worst greenwashing I've ever seen!
A fast fashion brand having a “sustainable line” is like a swimming pool having a peeing section. Just sayin’… ya know? 🌎💦Ⓜ️ary💕☃️
Omg, I love this analogy - spot on!
@@BrainyCrafter Thanks for your awesomeness… have a great day, and stay outa da pool 🤣Ⓜ️ary
This is the best comparison I have read all day 😂🙏💚
@@marycharlebois6627 LOL!!
Very well and humourously put, Mary! :D
My thoughts on vegan fast food are, that it’s really great to have real options now when you’re out and about with friends etc. Before that, being the vegetarian or vegan of the group meant eating a sad portion of Pommes or a salad when everyone was enjoying their real meal. Therefore That was the idea many people had, what eating vegan must look like, salads. Which is not very convincing in terms of taste and convenience obviously, so showing that it’s as easy and convenient eating vegan now (at fast food places) is a very good thing imo.
Love this vid and especially loved how you brought up PETA! Can we get a full PETA video?? 🐶🐱🐰🐹
The problem for myself:
The second hand shops are overfilled with shein and so on. I dont want to buy this cheap made stuff because it doesnt last long. But often online you can't tell where its come from.
If it is way cheap, you have a pretty good idea where it is from and who made it I think.
@@TermiteVideo Not all the time. Some people sell cheap clothes for more money. All I can do is ask where its from, if its a "suspicious" thing.
Greenwashing should be fined as false advertising imo
With clear legal definitions for compostable, organic etc!
I don't think I'd put vegan fast food in the same greenwashing category as fast fashion. The fast food chains aren't pretending they're being ethical or sustainable by offering vegan choices, it's simply a choice driven by customer demand. Where fashion are just hiding behind the sustainable buzzwords as you say. It's also much harder for fast food to clean up their supply chain, as there would (sadly) be massive customer backlash if meat was removed. Where fashion could move to a truly ethical and sustainable model and the only impact on the customer would be the price.
I'm not vegan but I like trying vegan options. With my job I travel a lot and eating out constantly is something I had to do otherwise I don't eat. I appreciate these vegan options and the normalization of them.
I also agree with you, thank you for looking at these issues from different perspectives and talking about them at length.
While, I do see where you're coming from, I have a slightly different take on the fast food thing.
For the most part, people tend to eat out with others, so if your friends(or whoever you're eating out with) aren't vegan then the more places that have a vegan option, the easier it is to find a place everyone can agree on. Just like suggesting people only go to vegan only restaurants is not going to go down well with non-vegans.
My ex-boyfriend didn't like me being a vegetarian and would constantly take me to places where I couldn't order anything. I lived off baked potatoes and sad salads at fast food places. I would have loved having these new options available to me back then.
That’s a good point. Now I am so lucky that even the friends I have that aren’t vegetarian or vegan are so curious and willing to try vegan foods with me, so it can be easy to forget that that’s not the case for everybody, some people struggle a lot more with being vegan in their social lives, and low key those people are heroes for staying on track 🌿💚
It also works towards normalizing vegan options, which if you care about animal welfare, is key.
Yah I’ve never perceived the addition of vegan options to a menu as a greenwashing campaign, I always saw it was trying to expand their consumer base aka siphon money out of as many consumers as possible (by expanding the menu to include vegan consumers)
@@hannahvictoria7259 glad he’s your ex
I guess it lacks a BWAHAHAHA after "for a limited time" - the magnificent villain laugh.
The Shein one 😂😂 not to mention that they copy so many designs from less-known designers and actual sustainable companies, the hypocrisy is VERY real
Oh yeah that is an even deeper layer of their awfulness 😭
Anddd POC designers too!
I'm so glad that Coca Cola have those 900 plant-based bottles!!! I can sleep easy now
Right? Phew, it was a close call, but they saved us all
I'm really hopeful that the more normal it becomes to have to greenwash in order to attract customers, it will then become more normal for customers to be more skeptical and wary about the labels, which will ultimately result in companies actually having to be transparent and sustainable. Like you said, it's going to be a long process, but fingers crossed this is a speedy start to that process! Thank you so much for helping educate on these important issues!
Thank you for that info and pointing out how the wording misleads the consumer. It happens all the time, and awareness hopefully shines light on a rather deceptive plot
Thanks for keeping big companies honest.
Informative and engaging as always, Gittemary! Thank you for what you do!
Would also love to hear your take specifically on PETA and Greenpeace. And also on online petitions.
I wish the big companies would just help to pay to give us access to recycling. We have hardly any recycling here. We're SO far behind in my area and I'm in a capital US city... Its the bare minimum and we have almost no recycling. only #1 plastics and cardboard. Not glass. Not any other plastic. Not even metals. Eurgh.
Love the content!!
Was wondering if you could do a video on where to start in finding more sustainable clothing and alternatives to the likes of Amazon when it comes to new books, music etc. Because while a lot can be found in thrift shops supporting more sustainable products and different business models is also necessary but it's quite hard to sort through all the green washing
I am really torn about greenwashing in general. On one hand I think it is great that it normalises caring about the environment and that it confronts people with having to make the choice to be more sustainable at every turn. I also think it could be a "gateway drug" to actual sustaibablity, so to speak, when the algorithms realize a person gravitates towards green products and recomends more and more sustainable content (at least I got into sustaibablity in a similar way). And while the impact of green wahsed products in only minuscule it's still better than nothing. I also think it's great that there is enough of a demand for sustainable products that the big companies need to respond to it.
However, it makes me absolutly, bloody mad that it's all just a big scam. Especially since it's really hard to tell whether something is greenwashing or actually sustainable.
May I be kinda happy about Greenwashing?
It proves there is a demand for green/ethical products growing.
A demand big enough that producers have to answer that.
Ok, they answered with marketing, buzzwords, smoke and mirrors, token measures - which is bad.
But still, there is a market for true green thing.
I get that you're optimistic, but the reality is
people just wanna keep being mindless consumers without feeling guilty. So they look for 'ethical, green, eco' label so when they buy more stuff that they don't need, they don't feel bad about it..
@@almamater489 yeah, but it is useful. It's a market.
Every product have to compete, every product need to be "more guilty-free than others" to sell, adding every time a bit more of real action to the babbling. It raised the stake.
Loved this video! It’s really important to keep these messages about greenwashing coming. Education is power and it is clear that sustainable practices are what we consumers need to continue to ask and push for with companies . I think they are listening but we need to hold them accountable. Like you, I basically only buy thrifted or secondhand items. I also support small, local businesses in my neighbourhood. Thanks for the valuable work you do! 💚💚💚👍
About plant based fast food - before I went vegan it was kinda our little family tradition to go to the Burger King every time we come to the city ( which is rare), my little boy loves his cheeseburgers and I enjoyed the whopper. Plus it’s very affordable to feed the family there really quick when you are running errands. So when I decided to go vegan I was very happy that there is a plant based whopper and we can still keep the tradition. Cause let’s be honest to take a family to the specialized vegan restaurant would cost at list double of what we pay at Burger King. So I look at it as the positive thing - it should motivate more people to go vegan and not to worry to never taste their favorite burger.
I have a lot of problems because I am oversize and is ridiculous to try to find good fit and good sizes out of the fast fashion. Trousers is becoming seriously traumatic: shein is size trustworthy and I don't need to be called fat in shops. I totally agree with you but this is an issue that needs to be addressed. I passed 3 months looking for a pair of jeans that fit me that was inside my budget and nothing until I order one in shein. I passed 3 days with anxiety because I have done it but I didn't find any other place.
I just don't get why Coca-Cola Cola could not use glass bottles again where you pay a fee that you get back when you return it to the supermarket, and then these are reused? I mean they used to have glass only...
Probably because what they care most about is cutting their costs. Plastic is way cheaper than glass to acquire. It's also much less heavy than glass, reducing the cost of transporting the bottles. They don't have to pay for the collection system of used glass bottles, or the sanitization process. They probably did the math and saw that even when charging consumers a fee for glass, plastic is still cheaper. And they dgaf about the environment, so they will keep the plastic.
Since last year I can get Coca Cola in reused glass again!
Awesome video Gittemary! I’ve been on a no spend challenge since January 2020 so definitely no take out food. I consider most take out food frankenfood whether it’s vegan or not. Stay awesome dear one!!
I think the case of fast food corporations replacing animal based products with plant based is different from clothing companies. People will not really notice a difference between clothes made ethically and sustainably, and clothes that are not. They will notice if their favorite animal based product is now changed irreversibly to a plant based alternative. I see the idea of them adding vegan options as a chance for the masses to try vegan food at an easily accessible location that they already frequent.
I absolutely agree with everything said!
I agree with what you said about vegan fast food, it it basically just an addition to their other products, however I have to admit, I've always been a fast food lover, but I stopped going to McDonalds because they don't have vegan options (in my country at least), but I buy the plant based whopper from Burger King at least once a month. I think if we would never buy from these big corporations, their conclusion would be that there's no demand for vegan food. Also, as you said, it's good that the availability of vegan food in big chains somehow normalizes having vegan food even for non vegans every once in a while.
I would disagree with the idea that our purchases of vegan menu items don't affect the practices of those businesses if they are otherwise non-vegan. Whether or not enough people buy a plant-based menu item determines whether that item even stays on the menu. Multiple fast food chains have dropped their plant-based options because of lack of demand. And I personally know people who have consumed the plant-based item just out of curiosity or felt like getting something different every now and then who would have otherwise bought a meat menu item. That is one less meat menu item consumed every time that happens. I also know people who have drastically reduced their meat intake in general once they realized that the plant-based alternative is actually tasty. Having the option at McDonald's or KFC may be what first gets people's foot through that door. I don't really see how we can't see that as a net benefit.
I saw other parents on my Facebook talking about how they are shocked that they find toxic chemicals on childrens clothing from shein and other similar places. I’m over here like 💀
I would love to see you work with any (but actually every) company that you talk about in these video's, so you could all change it around to fair and good stuff!
We went to H&M this weekend cause my bfs family memebers son has a bday and wanted a specific shirt and I couldn't find it in any thrift store. And let me tell you I was fuming in there. All the green washing! How dare they. My bf had to say "ok ok calm down and go out" cause I kept pointing at signs and going "they are puting lies on their clothes, look at this!!" I was so mad! But it wasn't for me, this is for a kid I kept telling my self to let it to. Blah. Sorry. Now I going to watch this video.
Ok watched it now. As far as vegan fast food goes..I am not vegan, I have celiac and many many food alergies so my choice is very limited. (One of the things I am higly alergis is mushrooms so..) I did order a gluten free beyond burger and I got a very bad response and was told that is not possible. I can't figure it out cause Beyond burger is also gluten free so ?? I think for vegans there should be an option on the menu, why exclude anyone. I do however agree that it goes in the same place as all their revenous. It's a slippery slope. But I am way to specific and a minority in the way I have to eat. So I don't think I should have a say.
Haha I know the feeling, they have 0 audacity 😭
@@Gittemary and people walk around like zombies and shop and think "ohh organic cotton, I did good" nooo Linda! I had to educate my mom when she proudly said that she bought from their concious line. But she wouldn't listen. Oh sometimes it is so hard to advocate cause boomers have their own ways.
Lot of places offer gluten free ingredients but cannot avoid cross contamination. It may be what had happenned in your case.
I have celiac and am vegan, so I also have quite limited food choices when I go out! So I really agree with you that it’s important for big food chains to include different foods, because if McDonalds have a gluten-free vegan burger then I know I can get something to eat basically no matter where I am :)
@@bookishdaydreams4993 oo hello fellow celiac:) where I live mcdonalds has notthing even remotly gluten free. And also I can't eat in most restaurants cause they don't understand either all the possible foods that can contain gluten ( I mean spices wtf) and contamination is a foren term for them. So the few ones that I can eat at I am so grateful for any item I can have. Cause it is so depressing going out with friends to eat and them just watching them eat.-_-
I come to your channel when I feel like nobody gives a $#!t about the world. Thanks for doing what you do!
Hi Gittemary! I love your videos! Would you have some books about greenwashing to recommend? I'd be interested! Thanks!
i've got something even crazier: several weeks ago i was walking past a gas station and they had a banner there with a contest or some kind of promo or idk and they were offering reusable, sustainable drinking bottles/thermos thingies as prizes 😂😂😂😂 at a f. gas station. for buying petrol.
I'm what I'd call an 'opportunistic vegetarian' meaning if I go some where with a vegan / vegetarian option I will get it but if not I will eat meat when I have to. Restaurants having these options mean I can make those vegan/ vegetarian choices more often.
Super video! 👍
this is awesome, thank! :)
The Mega Corp lexicon:
Sustainability refers to sustaining our profit margins
Plant based foods: will suggest superior quality products but they will still be made in the same way as conventional products in our ranges, I.e with GM soya and corn and preservatives
Planning for the future: This means covering ourselves with as many green fig leaves as we can to try to ward off government legislation requiring real and costly change.
Changing the way we do things: Means a big increase in press releases and advertising to exploit current preoccupations.
The problem with the McPlant (at least in the Netherlands) is that it is marketed as a vegan option. However they added cheddar cheese. And in very tiny letters they stated that the McPlant is not necessarily vegan or even vegetarian certified, it is ideal for the flexitarian...
For me personally, I try to be vegan more for the ethical side of things as opposed to the environmental side of things so I’m mostly for the vegan fast food situation especially as you say it is a way of normalising vegan food. However because of all the other reasons, I try to limit how much I consume because I don’t want to massively support those businesses. But sometimes ya gurl just needs a Maccies 😂
I know it's better to not give your money to those big companies, but I also tried the McPlant Burger and it tastes like real meat, imo. Nevertheless, I heard that the mayonnaise (and bun?) isn't vegan (in Austria), so McPLANT is quite misleading... cause it's not vegan but vegetarian...😩 I made a less buy year and I am now on a no buy year and I've never bought a thing from Shein (I guess it's called Ultra-Fast-Fashion?). The last two years I only used what I have and if something can't be mend I replace it from Secondhand Fashion. And til now it really worked well. 👗👚👍🏻
I definitely support vegan options becoming more mainstream and available. And I'm always really excited to try something new but there's just some companies that I don't want to support. I'm fortunate enough to live in an area where I have a few vegan restaurants that can make copycat versions.
Bare minimum would be that sustainable brands produce clothes that look cute AND are in big sizes. If you wear big sizes you can't find anything second hand and you can't find anything sustainable. Like I would even pay big money but there is nothing out there that fits my size and style. Shein is currently the only brand that covers those two. Points for me. And it makes me furious tbh. I don't want to support that but I also don't want to walk around feeling uncomfortable in my clothes.
Shelbi does at her channel recommend more sustainable clothing brands that are size inclusive. Check her out :) She has some kind of ranking system going.
“For a limited time only, I won’t kill you” 😂
🥰🥰🥰
Get it girl 🔥
I'm glad that you made this video, but I did have some reservations about your thoughts on fast-food chains incorporating plant-based options.
You mentioned that it maintains the inaccessible white veganism trope, but then go on to say that we should prefer to support all-vegan restaurants and cooking at home. I agree that this is a better choice, but I think you contradicted yourself here.
I don't eat at these fast food restaurants often, but I think we should view this as making plant-based food MORE accessible. For those whose lifestyle already includes fast food (many lower income people) this could be the easiest way for them to eat less animal products.
Love that this discussing is happening, just food for thought!
Yeah as I also said, my thoughts on this are not all in complete alignment, and I can see the logic on both sides 😅 this is in many ways one of those things where I don’t think there is just one right answer, or one thing that is universally more true than the other, there are pros and cons and consequences to both ways of looking at it
Great video thank u for your effort !!!
Looks like the sheincares page is down??? 😂😂 villain energy 🙌🏻
I'm not vegan (tried being a vegetarian, but because I have IBS and can't eat beans, I didn't get enough protein and got sick after a full year as a vegetarian). But I don't like the big burger chains either. This Christmas we had to drive for 8 hours with a 5 months old, so we stopped at a lot of McDonald's and Burger Kings to change his diaper (I tell you, their changing facilities were pretty decent 👌), but I'm a snacking girl. So you know... A burger or two went down - and everytime I got hungry pretty quick afterwards 🤷♀️ what is up with that?! So I guess I would also rather go for a REAL burger 😅🙈 not the McDonald's or Burger King burgers, sorry not sorry🤷♀️
I agree with most of the points, however I'd say the big difference in addition green washing between fast food and fast fashion is that atleast food is consumable 🤷🏻♀️ I definitely think these are all interesting points but it's a hard balence to achieve
For me, there's a small difference between vegan food at fast food places, and fast fashion. Basically, food is a need that people will consume every day. Most people will eat roughly the same amount of energy no matter the source. So producing C02/waste/pollution is inevitable. There's no real way to boycott food, short of growing it yourself, and there's no way of getting food second hand (unless you're freegan/dumpster diving, but that isn't accessible/legal/feasible on a large scale) or of reducing your food needs. On the other hand, we have massively overstuffed wardrobes, a source of second hand clothing so vast that a lot of it will end up in landfill, and while I get how clothing can be important and a source of self expression, the level of self expression we demand from our clothing is a luxury that humans have gone without pretty much until the industrial revolution (like, yes people would express things, sometimes extravagantly, through their clothes, but they would usually only have a handful of outfits to chose from in their day to day, and those clothes would then last decades, rather than people changing styles and aethetics every couple years and having countless outfits to choose from every day).
So basically, imo, fast fashion greenwashing is saying, 'here, buy this thing that is not a basic necessity to add to an already workable wardrobe, for you comfort/pleasure/aethetic enjoyment' (there are exceptions to this of course but that's the the case for the majority of the people targeted by these brands) while fast food is saying 'here's an option for consuming calories that you would have had to consume regardless'. And in that situation, I can get behind vegan food in fast food. I won't celebrate the brands for it or congratulate them or anything, but I won't hesitate to go eat there and I'll still feel like it's a net positive for the environment. From a marketer's standpoint, you could conceivably aim for everybody to own 20% more (or even more still) clothing than they do now. But you can't realistically aim for everybody to eat 20% more food. One type of consuming is potentially infinitly expandable, while our apetites for food are not - we eat better than we used to, but not that significantly more, jsut differently. So fast fashion has to create new needs, while fast food is fighting (with supermarkets, bakeries, other restaurants, etc) for a bigger share of an exisiting market. At least that's my opinion, and I'd love to hear any thoughts about this!
Are those new tattoos on your face, the dots under your eyes? Can you explain the dots? I've noticed you have them on your fingertips and your palm - what do they signify to you?
The dots under my eyes are eyeliner 😎, and I have a whole video about the dots on my hands, you can find it in the tattoo playlist 🌿
Ooooh my goodness, Gitte! Just listen to what's said at the end of this video from Business Insider about that H&M recycling machine... you've probably watched it before, but it reminded me of this green washing rant of yours. 🤦😳
ruclips.net/video/obO1PKfXGpQ/видео.html
AE77 is another one
I understand the reasoning you has for the vegan fast food. However I am an ethical vegan and I guess i see it as a step in the right direction. Because if in the future more people opt for the vegan version at a fast food restaurant they might take some meat options down and that would mean less animals are being killed. That’s not the case now, but I am hoping it could be like that in the future.
I absolutely also hope that is the development we’ll see, no doubt, my fingers are crossed 🌿
Plant-based for the environment. Veganism is an ethical stance against the exploitation of animals. Also, I disagree that big brands creating plant-based products doesn't make a change. It puts the idea out there that we don't need to exploit animals for a "tasty" snack. Maybe it doesn't work for the environment as much as you wanted it to but that doesn't mean that it doesn't make a difference. Even if the company itself doesn't particularly care about that difference.
I would not buy Coca cola, even if it were legitimately sustainable (which it sure as hell ain't!!!) because the product itself is sooooooo bad for humans to consume! So that's surely another thing to consider a good reason to boycott their company. ;)
Also, I would not get any food from McDonald's or similar fast food places, because their regular food is so highly processed, it is really no longer food, and I don't imagine their vegan items are much different. I saw a video once on how chicken mcnuggets are made and it nearly made me sick; it was so gross!
Please support brands coming out with vegan options because we need to tell these brand this is what we want more of. So many people say don’t support it but we shouldn’t do that and it makes it less of a reason for these brands to even give a dam about supporting veganism. I think your view point is just wrong about this because if more people go with the vegan option and keep saying this what we want that gives them a reason to keep coming out with vegan options and it’s in their favor because they’re still making money. I agree with support small vegan businesses but showing the big corporations we want change is even better.
I know what my state thinks about veganism because I’ve never seen a single one of these vegan fast food items before
Same.
Ok, legimate question. Why don't RUclipsrs even say the word pandemic? I've noticed most of the RUclips content creator I watch have cute euphemisms like "panini" "pamimi' etc. Is this just cause no one wants to focus on the pandemic? Or does RUclips have bots trolling for the word pandemic? Honestly curious.
It is not that I don’t want to focus on it - I have also made several vlogs from lockdown as well, but those videos where I mention it correctly get demonitised which will severely hurt my engagement and reach
@@Gittemary That sucks, thank you for the honest reply.
Wait...SHEINCares?..like Primark Cares?? Did Shein or Primark copy even the name of the misleading greenwashing campaigns from the other? 😂 the more I learn about fast fashion companies, the more I have to laugh...
I imagine Shein asked Primark if they could copy their homework, and forgot to not make it obvious 😂
@@Gittemary Yeah it seems like it 😆
Is 4Ocean greenwashing? I can't imagine buying a $20 bracelet really pulls 1lb of trash from the ocean.
So you rather that fast food wont have any options? The ideia is for people to make the switch. No company is going to stop making money just because ... people would simply not buy there any more. Supply and demand. Here on my country burguer king louched 3 products in the same year! And i used to work at McDonald's and i saw their vegetarian burguer increse on comsuption. So that is sending the message that people want that. So hoppefuly they will be lounching more options. The companies make the product but Consumers have to choose it over the other one and maybe they will enventually take the meat option out of the menu once people start opting for the vegetarian or vegan option. Many of the people that eat the vegetarian stuff at those places arent even vegan or vegetarian and really cool if you ask me having the oportunity to present that to a meat eater. Thats the way i see it.
I think the vegan food are good to get closer to meat-eaters but I personally don't support it and don't consume it