Target Begins Carrying Seventh Generation Household Products
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 08.13.05
Our reader Erica recently tipped us off that Target stores would be carrying 7th Generation products, starting this summer at 50 select Targets, potentially to be expanded later. Erica mentioned that "In addition to a store list and a $10 sale coupon, the [7th Gen] site also has a thoughtful essay from the company president about why they chose Target over Wal-mart...I was already impressed when Target stocked Method cleaning products as of a few years ago". She was right: a most interesting letter.
For those of you unfamiliar with Seventh Generation, they distribute household "products [that] are designed to work as well as their traditional counterparts, but use renewable, non-toxic, phosphate free and biodegradable ingredients, and are never tested on animals".
Seventh Generation's President, Jeffrey Hollender, states in his letter that "Target is ahead of many large corporations in having prepared an extensive report on its social, economic, and environmental practices, and the chain has policies on land procurement that include consideration of historical sites, a factor that rarely concerns other companies in its class...Target will sell almost half of the products we make. Better still, they'll feature us in two special end-of-aisle displays that will include consumer education materials we've designed to help consumers understand what we're about and why our products are the healthier, safer choice..."
" We're estimating that the impact of that kind of distribution could increase the total amount of consumers we're able to reach by anywhere from 25 to 50 percent. That's a huge potential impact, one with the power to make more families and more of the environment far healthier than we could ever hope to make them on our own".
That's a similar point to the one TreeHugger made in its coverage of Wal-mart's newly constructed LEED certified Supercenter: bigger seldom starts "better" but it can help spread it faster. Mainstreaming the green is alright with us.
Very nice. I've been using Seventh Generation for a long time.
I am a diehard green thumber and love the ideals of this company. However, their clothes detergent does not stack up to Tide. I found none of my undies or really dirty socks, etc. came clean. I hate having to buy Tide, but try the one without perfumes or dyes as a consolation. I challenge Seventh Generation to improve and strengthen their detergent as they grow in numbers.
My first comment on Treehugger...
I am so excited about this! No longer will i have to scrounge for coupons to make them graduate-student-affordable (because I could only find them at big label organic grocers). I love the Method products at Target. Looking forward to this!!!
(by the way, Method laundry detergent works well and smells good too)
Hurray!
I've used 7th Gen for years. At first I had to mail-order it from Gaiam. Then they started carrying it in our local Albertson's. They also have the products now at Market Street (United Supermarkets).
I'm willing to bet that as few as three years Target would not have been willing to give them shelf space. We've come a long way to a greater acceptance of eco-friendly products.
I checked out the Method products but they are more expensive than the comparable 7th Gen so I've stuck with them. Now I'll be able to pick them up at Target - the store is closer to me than any other that carries 7th Gen.
Oh, if the laundry soap doesn't get your really dirty clothes clean, just add a cup of Borax or Washing Soda to that load. That should solve the problem and then you won't need to use Tide!
If consumers who would never consider looking for healthier alternatives will now have exposure to 7th Gen, that's not a bad thing. However, the bigger problem is that Target is exactly the kind of corporate monolith which is responsible for the degradation of everything from our environmental well-being to our built physical landscape to the integrity of communities across the country. So, why on earth would regular readers of TH, like those who've commented on this article, ever give their money to Target? Why abandon the merchants (whether mailorder or the 'organic' grocer noted above) which originally provided these fine products to you? To 'save' 10%? Or because it's a few minutes closer to your house? Target is as smart and gigantic and ruthless as any other corporation in its field -- it has to be to compete. They are now carrying 7th Gen. precisely because we witheld our money from them and they're hoping to lure us in with this show of 'responsibility,' not because they truly wish to turn on their bread-and-butter customers to the world of lower-impact cleaning agents. If you now will buy from Target, you have walked right into the trap. Target becomes richer, the profits go to a distant HQ not back into the community, the workers still get crappy wages, plastic, disposable widgets are still shipped in from China to fill the shelves, etc. Only by avoiding such behemoths can we hope to move forward to an era of actual responsible practices, healthy choices and human-scale economic relationships.
The thoughtful essay link has moved.
http://www.seventhgeneration.com/making_difference/newsletter_article.php?issue=53&article=154
Why abandon the merchants (whether mailorder or the 'organic' grocer noted above) which originally provided these fine products to you?
Well if I am going to be treated poorly by rude, hungover, underpaid staff, and completely ineffectual, uncaring management, that 10% makes all the difference in the world. Whole Foods is no better than Target - except that they charge obscenely more for everything.
I think what really matters here is that more consummers will have the option of choosing products that are environmentally conscious. Some people do not go the green route due to price, convenience and lack of education. Granted, Target is hoping for a big advertising gig about being "green"... but if it gets the message out to a few more families and the result is less chemicals being used and dumped into our water supply, isn't that valuable? Some of us will continue purchasing our products from the same places we always have... we foster local sustainability. That said, I am not about to complain if my chain store shopping neighbor gains a bit of education and starts making a wiser choice. Every little step is important... it all adds up.