The reports of Wal-Mart's green business model are greatly exaggerated.
Three weeks ago, Wal-Mart unveiled a new Earth Month 'merchandising and marketing campaign' in an official press release. While Wal-Mart claims the marketing blitz 'takes 'going green' mainstream,' the campaign's keystone is a massive buy of print advertisements, weighing in at nearly one third of a billion pages.
I don't believe a mountain of wasted wood pulp celebrates the spirit of Earth Day. Wal-Mart's recent ad buy flies in the face of its promise to produce 'zero waste.' It seems clear that Wal-Mart's 'Earth Month' promotion is just one symptom of a broader problem? Wal-Mart is greenwashing, and it is getting away with it.
In spite of all the 'green' hype at Wal-Mart, the company's business model presents serious environmental shortfalls. The long-anticipated Wal-Mart sustainability report cited a significant global increase in CO2 emissions in 2006, after the company's green campaign began. Even worse, at a recent conference, Wal-Mart's CEO Lee Scott flatly declared 'we are not green' to an audience of economists. Despite these facts, Wal-Mart continues to generate positive headlines with it's enviro-marketing.
I agree with Mr. Scott. Wal-Mart is not a green company. I, for one, would welcome a serious investigation of Wal-Mart's performance as a steward of the environment.
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