The Staggering True Price of Products Made Cheaply
[Updated January 2022] I’ve often looked around and felt depressed by our buying habits. As societies got richer and things got more affordable, we’ve become desensitized to the buying and throwing process. The wastefulness of it escapes us and we forget to think about the true price of products – especially if they’re priced cheaply.
The prices of many things have become so low that we often buy things we don’t even need. Do we even think about what happens to things after we bought them on a moments’ whim? After they’re carted out along with other household trash, they cease to be our problem – or so we think. But that’s not true. Sooner or later, it becomes our problem.
It’s hard to imagine that just two generations ago, people owned and wasted a lot less. Most things were reusable and people repaired things.
Lower Prices Accelerate Consumption and Waste
In Singapore, I’ve noticed a lot more people shopping on e-commerce platforms like Taobao, Lazada, and Shopee – because it is often cheaper than buying locally. You can get anything on it – from soft toys to furniture. People set up entire shops with things they purchased from these sites.
My sister-in-law would order kids’ clothes and shoes from that site that costs a few bucks apiece. A few bucks. They often come with free shipping too. Can you believe it?
It is frightening. At that price, people would be more willing to buy things even if they aren’t sure if they would like them. If they don’t like something they bought, they likely wouldn’t waste the time or shipping fees to get an exchange. Some may even see these products as disposable, especially since they’re cheaply made. As a result, they fall apart faster, and no one would repair things they bought at $3.
In other words, “cheap” accelerates over-consumption and waste creation.
Obviously, cheaper products are not the only reason for over-consumption – people over-consume pricier things too. We buy more because we can afford to and because we enjoy the short-lived excitement of buying things.
I’m not complaining about things being affordable. As someone with limited resources, I appreciate the ability to purchase things at low prices. It’s just that the throwaway culture it breeds frightens me.
It doesn’t help that marketing campaigns constantly urge us to buy products that falsely promise to improve our lives. In East Asia, there are monthly sales on the mentioned platforms – think 2/2, 7/7, 11/11, etc. They keep on you the platform with flash deals and coupons you can accumulate so you’re on the site even when you’re not thinking about getting something. In a way, they condition you to constantly think about getting something. How insidious is that?
Are cheap deals really cheap though?
True price of products
As consumers, we only look at the price tag of an item. It’s time we considered the environmental and labor costs of an item too. The price is always higher than what’s on the price tags, cheap and expensive products alike.
As a product passes through its manufacturing, transportation, and disposal process, it often impacts negatively on the environment.
Manufacturing
The manufacturing process consumes resources, releases pollutants into the air and water, and often contributes to deforestation – take, for instance, the palm oil and the beef industry. Countless factories have polluted rivers, tainting water sources and causing adverse health effects to people living nearby. This problem is worse in developing countries with laxer regulations.
Logistics
Then it’s time to transport products to the consumers. As more people shop online, the carbon footprint of products has increased as the marketplace gets increasingly globalized and convenient. We’re getting everything from sofas and notebooks from other countries. All of which will incur a shipping footprint, but that’s not where it stops.
Packaging
In addition to fuel consumption and vehicle emission, we now have to contend with packing material too. During the pandemic, online shopping has increased tremendously. With that comes packaging wastes. These wastes head right into landfills and a significant amount will find its way into the ocean. All in addition to the masks we now find ourselves wearing ever so often.
Labor
I always believe that when a product is unreasonably cheap, someone somewhere is being exploited. These people often work long hours in hazardous conditions with so little pay they remain in poverty. Remember the Rana Plaza collapse that killed over 1000 workers? And then there are those who work around toxic dust and chemicals, putting their lives at risk on a daily basis.
End-of-life
What happens when a product is made to be priced as cheaply as possible? While producing things on a larger scale and implementing an as-needed business model can both reduce the prices of things. Quality is often sacrificed in the process. After all, these companies are trying to cut costs and make a profit. How can you make money if you make a durable product that costs only a few dollars?
I can go on and on, but you get the picture. The true price of products is extremely high!
Consider the true price of products
Like I’ve mentioned earlier in the article, I don’t oppose things becoming cheaper. I oppose overconsumption and treating cheaply-priced products as disposable commodities. It’s simply unsustainable to constantly take resources from the environment only to turn them into throwaway products.
If we’re not careful with our purchases, we’re unintentionally encouraging companies to continuously exploit people and use the cheapest materials and disposal methods possible, to the detriment of the environment. All in the name of profit.
What can we do?
We’re not helpless. These are some things we can do:
- Use what you have – definitely cheaper than the cheapest new product.
- Buy secondhand.
- Wear things out.
- Before buying a product, find out more about it and the company’s ethics. Look out for certifications relevant to the product, for e.g. fair trade certified, FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified, organic certified etc.
Support companies that use ethically/responsibly sourced material. - Always keep quality in mind when purchasing something.
If you’re on a budget, evaluate the quality of the product in terms of durability and environmental impact, then find a balance between quality and price. - Limit your purchases, even when the price is cheap. Buy only what you need.
- Buy locally and support businesses selling handmade products.
- Avoid fast fashion.
- Always remember the true cost behind the price tag.
- Read about 7 scary impacts humans exert on the environment
