Green Guilt: Many Americans Feel Bad Supporting Wasteful Companies

Consumers across the globe are beginning to feel bad about supporting products that negatively impact the environment, and it's time for businesses to take that into account.

“Sustainability” and “green” have quickly become leading buzzwords in the business world, and for good reason – a new report from Greendex suggests a number of Americans feel bad supporting wasteful companies and products with their hard-earned dollars.

Approximately 21 percent of respondents said they feel guilty about the impact they have on the environment in terms of the products they buy and the companies they support. Surveyed respondents also noted they have faith in the individual's ability to protect the environment, which suggests average Americans feel their purchase choices can have an impact on their surroundings.

In other countries, this sentiment is even more prevalent. Consumers in India, China and Brazil also reported feeling guilty when they used products wastefully or supported eco-unfriendly businesses.

“Despite their relatively light footprints as consumers, there seems to have been some internalization and a sensitization to environmental issues in places like China, India and Brazil,” says Eric Whan, director of sustainability at GlobeScan, as quoted by MediaPost.

Lean Sustainability

So what does this mean for businesses? It's time to clean up your act – literally. Companies should take a long, hard look at their impact on the environment and determine whether there are ways to cut back on waste.

For many companies, Kaizen is the answer to this problem. Going Lean means the reduction of waste – wasteful processes, byproducts and everything in between. For example, a manufacturer may have an extensive supply chain. By ironing out the transportation of various goods and components, manufacturers can eliminate the different steps in the supply chain, thereby bolstering efficiency while eliminating needless transportation of products – a win for the company and a win for the environment.

When companies want to leverage Lean manufacturing as a way to go green, it's best to come up with a plan that makes note of both goals. That way, organizations can create a cohesive program that enables them to accomplish their sustainability objectives and other business goals.