Luxuries are the first thing to go in a recession; we eat out less, holiday more cheaply, buy fewer fancy goods and it would appear, stop buying organic food.
According to The Guardian, British consumers are shunning higher priced foodstuffs, particularly organic eggs, in favour of cheaper alternatives. 'We care about the environment but we’re not paying an extra 70p per item' is the message coming from the supermarket tills.
For the past 10 years the popularity of organic food has been rising prolifically and producers have been reacting to demand. But now it’s gone into reverse; organic food sales have just fallen by close to 20% in the past quarter. Retail buyers are refusing to put up the cash for goods that the public can no longer afford and the sector will join the list of those hit by the impending recession. Realistically, green consumerism, even when allied with concerns about health, was never going to last. It’s a post-materialistic luxury which was always going to be given the shove once people were forced to start worrying about their jobs, mortgages and utility bills again.
At the same time coal is now looking like it will be the UK’s new ‘energy of the future’. Those in power would like us to believe that we will be able to sequestrate the carbon emissions. You can believe that if you want but frankly if it means that energy bills rise by any significant amount then the public will reject it just like they are rejecting those organic eggs.
