On Day 16 of the 30-Day Green Cat Challenge, I wrote about encouraging the pet cataloguer, Drs. Foster and Smith, to go green. I had just received one of their catalogues and was not impressed that they had very few eco-friendly products (about 3) in a catalogue of 76 pages. So, I drafted an email to send to their customer service department to encourage them to embrace sustainable business practices.
Well, I am pleased to say that I heard back from them right away. They actually posted a comment on the blog entry about what they’re doing to become more green. Here’s a link they gave me: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/General.cfm?gid=606. In a nutshell, they’re making their own biodegradable packing peanuts and shipping with cardboard boxes that are made from 75{456796300b989ac2391159a2df073ed1ad38074dfcdb28494d5d1df8ab5972d8} recycled cardboard. They also listed some of the products that they carry which are eco-friendly (not too many just yet) and told me they’re developing an eco-friendly shop online section to their website.
This is a great start. It’s encouraging to see that companies are really paying attention to what consumers want and are responding to the demand for greener products. I’m not sure how they found my blog post so quickly, but it means that I know they’re probably reading this one as well.
So, Drs. Foster and Smith, hats off to you, but as an eco-conscious consumer, I will be looking forward to seeing continued change and real movement towards greener business practices. I look forward to seeing hundreds of green products listed in your catalogue, although I understand if it starts out as dozens. Anything less than that would appear like you’re not really committed to this endeavour as I know there are so many eco-friendly pet products out there. I also look forward to seeing that your catalogues are printed on recycled paper with vegetable-based inks.
HOW YOU CAN TAKE ACTION TODAY
- Pick a business, any business. It could be your cat sitter, your vet’s office, Petsmart, the charity you foster kittens for, the pet boutique you frequent, etc. The point is, just pick one and let them know in person, by email or by phone that you would like to know what they are doing to move towards more sustainable practices. Based on the Drs. Foster and Smith example, you know that companies are listening, so make your voice heard today!