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Willing to give more green for green?

Posted by David Beard, Boston.com Staff July 30, 2008 08:38 AM

By Beth Daley, Globe Staff

It's hard to avoid the onslaught of eco-friendly products these days. Maybe it was a joke, but I've even seen a reference for carbon neutral underwear.


ear.jpg
Eco-friendly earrings (Globe photo)

Now, a new Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies survey show that marketers are clearly tapping into a money-maker: People want environmentally friendly products - and are willing to pay more for them even if their financial situation is poor.

The survey, conducted by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media and Yale showed that half of respondents said they would "definitely" or "probably" pay 15 percent more for eco-friendly clothes' detergent or for an automobile. Forty percent said they would spend 15 percent more on "green" computer printer paper and 39 percent would do the same for green wood furniture.

And Americans who said their current financial situation is "fair" or "poor" were just as willing to spend 15 percent more on environmentally friendly detergent or furniture as those Americans with a better financial picture.

Some 75 percent of respondents said environmental groups are "very" or "somewhat" trustworthy when it comes to sponsoring eco-labels, only 55 percent said government agencies were trustworthy and 51 percent said industry groups were.

So will you pay more for green products? And how certain are you that the products you are buying really are green?

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1 comments so far...
  1. everyone says they want it green (more cost) but the bottom line is that heating oil, gas and food the last few years has (it seems) doubled, and our income hasn't. Put new windows in, insulate, now mandatory pay for healt care. Well, I'm just trying to keep my thermostats at 60 this winter and my husband and I work full time (i;m self employed) and where do they think we are getting tthis extra money? By the way, even though my business is growing (not at the inflation rate) my husband and everyone in his company hasn't had a raise for 4 years.

    Posted by sandi alvarez August 10, 08 02:58 PM
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Bennie DiNardo is the Boston Globe's deputy managing editor/multimedia
Beth Daley covers environmental issues for the Globe
Christine Chinlund is deputy health/science editor for the Globe.
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Gideon Gil is the Globe's Health/Science editor
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Erin Ailworth covers energy and the business of the environment for the Globe.
Michael Prager is a Boston-area writer and blogger with a focus on green issues.
Bina Venkataraman covers environmental issues for the Globe.
Christopher Reidy covers business for the Globe.
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