As a Greenpeace donor for more than six years and a long-term fan of Zara, I was indeed angry when I heard about Zara’s use of NPEs. The news broke last week, and members of Greenpeace protested outside several Zara’s stores in Hong Kong last week. In fact, they dressed up (one of them dressed as a pregnant lady, holding a milk bottle) for the protest.
Just in case you did not know, a Greenpeace report was published earlier in November indicates that cloths made by Zara, a Spanish company, are contaminated with both NPEs and toxic amines. This is scary because NPEs can be toxic even if you absorb it through your skin – you do not need to swallow it at all.
I have always been a fan of Zara, I went there at least every two months when I was in Hong Kong. Somehow, I assumed they were socially responsible just because it was a European company, but clearly it is not. Luckily, I have not bought anything from Zara for my baby so far, otherwise I would feel so guilty.
So this is the brutal reality: you cannot assume a company is ethical just because it is a Western company, and such perception is not uncommon for many Chinese. Now how do I find out which company is really socially responsible? I came across an article on Mashable, and it talks about the websites that measure companies’ social responsibility. This is a must read for those who care. Enjoy!
Suggested articles:
Mashable - 9 Sites That Measure Companies’ Social Responsibility (http://mashable.com/2011/10/25/measure-social-good-business/)
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