We’ve all got to grips with the idea of Fast Food, haven’t we?
It’s been around for a long time, now, and if you choose to join the queue to pick up a burger you are making an informed choice.
Fast Fashion? Yes, we understand that too.
Fast fashion consumers are generally quick to throw clothes away. These low-priced garments are seen as pretty much disposable and are often discarded after only being worn a handful of times, adding to the 92 million tonnes of textile waste produced by the fashion industry each year. Obviously, some of it comes our way, but the quality is such that it’s not going to last its new owner very long.
Which brings us to the new kid on the block, Fast Tech.
Just like Fast Fashion, there is now a tendency to buy cheap, easily binned electronics. Half the population has bought items that have been throw away within a year.
Well, firstly, these items should be recycled, but actually we should also think about what we are buying in the first place. And why. Do we really need it? Or are we being seduced by marketing and peer pressure to have the latest, shiniest model?
Are we buying something new when we could have what we already own repaired? While, of course, manufacturers need to play their part by providing us with models that can be upgraded or just given a new exterior, we must also recognise our own behaviour. If something is being sold very cheaply it is not going to last. Frighteningly, we have come to accept that things just won’t last long, but, really, we should be creating the demand for better quality products.
Do we need the figures to frighten us into action?
More than 100,000 tonnes of waste electricals are thrown away every year in the UK
880 million electrical items of all kinds are lying unused in UK homes