CSR-Mainstreaming and its Influence to Consumer Citizenship

CSR-Mainstreaming and its Influence to Consumer Citizenship

Vera Fricke and Ulf Schrader

Technische Universität Berlin

Fachgebiet Arbeitslehre Wirtschaft/Haushalt

Franklinstr. 28/29

10587 Berlin

Germany
Tel. +49-30-314 28770

CSR has become mainstream. No matter if stated in company brochures or business press: nationally and internationally acting companies avow themselves to CSR. By now the acronym is frequently used self-evidently omitting further explanation. The spreading of the notion is surprising, taking into account that CSR is actually quite demanding. The European understanding of CSR is based on the definition of the European Commission (EC 2005) as a voluntary commitment of companies complying with standards which exceed the mandatory regulations. The aim is to balance the three pillars of sustainability through integrating social and ecological aspects along the entire value chain integrating corporate responsibility into the core business of companies (CSRI 2008). This transfer of responsibility is ideally developed in collaboration with the respective stakeholder and communicated and implemented transparently. Many nationally and internationally well known associations like the Wold Business Council for Sustainable Development or BAUM e.V. and econsense in Germany strive for this commitment. At the same time a growing number of smaller and larger companies commit themselves to CSR.

This recent development has influence on private consumption. Products and services with added CSR value which were formerly only available in niche segments and companies that claim to act socially and ecologically sound can increasingly be found in the mass market. E.g. organic products are presented in supermarkets and discount shops offer their own fair trade product line.

This proliferation is described here as CSR mainstreaming – a process that accumulates activities of companies and their stakeholders to implement sustainability and products with added CSR value to mainstream markets²⁷. Hence, CSR mainstreaming enables mainstream consumers to participate in sustainable consumption. Sustainable consumption has entered the mainstream and is there to stay (Smith 2008). In the following we will discuss the ways leading to CSR mainstreaming and the resulting risks and opportunities for sustainable consumption and consumer citizenship (CCN 2005).

Generally, the road toward a sustainable mass market is twofold: arising from sustainable “Davids” as well as from conventional “Goliaths” (Wüstenhagen et al. 2001) (see figure 1).

Source: Following Wüstenhagen et al. 2001

The second road (CSR mainstreaming II) is taken by economically successful mass market providers that have developed from conventional to – relatively – sustainable Goliaths. This trend is prevailing in the public discussion on CSR. Nearly all corporations avow themselves to CSR on their internet presence. To what extend the statements are primarily ”rhetoric“ or relevant ”reality“ needs to be identified individually (Barth et al. 2007). Among the companies that have exposed themselves in a responsible manner is for example the German distance seller Otto. Its´ suppliers are audited with special ecological and social criteria. In their catalogues as well as in the internet a small assortment of products made out of organic cotton can be found. Furthermore, Otto is engaged in industry wide responsibility activities e.b. by co-initiating the Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI). In the coffee sector conventional corporations have also co-organized an association that seeks to implement sustainability along the entire coffee chain. The so called Common Code for the Coffee Community (4C) was developed jointly between coffee traders and roasters (e.g. Neumann Group, Sara Lee and Tchibo), the civil society (e.g. Oxfam) and governmental institutions. In the energy sector market dominating corporations also take up CSR as an important topic. Through vast investments in solar energy the energy company BP can claim to be the world´s largest solar energy producer. At the same time this engagement was internationally announced through the communication campaign that puts the future business “Beyond Petroleum” as slogan in front. Others like the German company RWE communicate through the slogan “vo-RWE-g gehen” (going ahead) to the public that they consider themselves as a role model in climate protection.

The described proliferation of CSR in the mass market does not stay without affects for sustainable consumption and thus consumer citizenship. Opportunities as well as risks arise.

Opportunities of CSR mainstreaming for sustainable consumption and consumer citizenship

CSR mainstreaming can facilitate sustainable consumption especially when corporate responsibility in the mass market has real impact on the product range, price arrangements and/or distribution patterns rather than placed as mere communication. Sustainable systems of benefits in the mass market imply an expanded product range and thus consumers have the opportunity to purchase products with an added social and ecological value which meet their expectations. When produced at higher quantities, the manufacturing costs decline und thus the consumer price. Hence, monetary and non-monetary transaction costs for products and services with added CSR value decrease for consumers in the mass market. Furthermore, customers will save time for information and distances as well as psychological energy for adjustments when organic and fair trade products are not solely offered in unfamiliar organic stores but are available in the known supermarket around the corner. A wider, more attractive range of choice enables “an individual [to make] choices based on ethical, social, economic and ecological considerations” (CCN 2005, p. 7), i.e. to act as a consumer citizen on the basis of improved consumer rights (Schrader 2007). In this respect CSR mainstreaming activates a CSR push towards spreading sustainable consumption and consumer citizenship (see figure 2).