The Orange peel is here to stay: A story on the power of collective action

9th Mar 2016

Wouldn’t it be great if oranges came with their own protective packaging—oh wait…..

This is not a story about the absurdities of the food industry creating unnecessary waste. Nor is this a rant about the irony of a self-proclaimed "natural and organic food market" with a "commitment to sustainable agriculture" selling unnecessarily wasteful produce. This is a story about people power, and how individuals acting collectively can make difference.

In this case, the humble orange is at the centre of our fight for environmental justice.

Late last week, a regular customer at Whole Foods posted this photo on twitter.

The image, with caption; "If only nature would find a way to cover these oranges so we didn't need to waste so much plastic on them", has been retweeted over 100,000 times and received almost as many likes, in just 4 days. It even has its own hashtag - #orangegate.

A huge amount of online discussion took place regarding the issue, with people tweeting comments such as; "a disgusting display of over packaging" and "what's next, pre-peeled hard boiled eggs?" The online discussion has also highlighted issues regarding marginalised groups in society, such as people with disabilities, as the pre-peeled oranges allow people who cannot peel their own to still enjoy the fruit. One twitter user said, "You know, ‪#orangegate made me realize that I haven't eaten an orange since I lost some hand function 2 years ago. Access is so real, guys."

Tweets being retweeted and images going viral certainly isn't new news, but its one of the most powerful ways consumers can have a voice in this increasingly digitalised society we find ourselves in. And in Gordon's case, the right people heard her voice.

Whole Foods responded to the social media uproar, and admitted that the sale of the $6 plastic package of peeled oranges was "definitely a mistake", and pulled the product from their shelves.

This is a brilliant example of how one individual can use the social tools available to them to inspire collective action, and make a positive change to their world. We are the consumers and we have the power to decide where we put our money!

1 Million Women is empowering women and girls around the world to lower their impact on the planet. If you love what we do, please support our work by donating a couple of dollars. For the price of a cuppa, you can help us inspire millions more! (click to donate)

Read this next: This is the most absurdly over-packaged item on the planet!

At it's core, 1 Million Women is a movement about choices. We have the ability to choose how we think about issues, spend our money, and live our lives. The entire #orangegate debate has highlighted a very real tension that we all face in our day-to-day lives: convenience vs. ethics. It's up to us to make a conscious effort not to forgo our moral code and do what's best for our planet. After all, we only have one.

I know I said this wasn't a story about unnecessary food packaging, but it'd be criminal of me not to share these images of some ridiculously pointless plastic packaging while we're here. Enjoy. (or start your own online campaign to get these pulled from the shelves too!).

What crazy packaging faux pas have you come across? What do you do/where do you shop instead?