I finally did it...I sent the Silk soymilk company a letter of complaint via their website.
One day early this past summer, I had been rather tickled while with my kids at the grocery store, as I spotted Silk for $2.99 again. It was that price a couple of years ago, but the price had risen modestly to $3.19 or so in the past year or two. I was pleased, and I told the kids that perhaps the reduced transportation costs were finally getting back to the consumer (you remember how all the food costs escalated dramatically with the high gas prices but never really came back down?). Anyhow, since I was with them, I bought the plain soymilk, and I let them pick up some chocolate soymilk AND very vanilla soymilk. I rarely, if ever, get both treats, but, as I said, I was pleased with the reduced price. I bought at least 4 or 5 cartons that day.
Over the years I've been a big soymilk fan, and Silk had impressed me by appealing to the masses with an ORGANIC, tasty product. They even touted their ethical support of green energy in their business. Silk became widely available and more cost-effective than other soymilks. Yay! I've recommended it to many friends and acquaintances.
On that fateful day, I was praising the Silk product to the kids and mentioned that it was organic. Hmm...well, I'm sure it is, though it says 'natural' here where I thought it said 'organic'. No...the label doesn't mention organic either...
The company had retained EXACTLY the same packaging, excluding the substitution of the word Natural for Organic, and essentially the same price for an inferior product! I felt betrayed. Consumer loyalty ruined.
How many other folks were tricked like that? I always check out new products, but you like to assume that the products you know are still as they were.
I am pleased to report that I have found a couple of other brands that work really well for us. The Nature's Place brand is available at Food Lion and is equal to Silk plus being organic for a fabulous $2.99! Kroger has its Private Selections Organic Soymilk, which I've caught for $2.29 on sale many times recently, but it's still only $2.79 at it's regular price. The kids didn't like the Kroger brand as much at first, but I think the formula has improved, as our last couple of cartons didn't have the issue with coagulated tiny bits.
After finding these alternatives, I feel a certain satisfaction at following through and letting the company know my disappointment. Silk succumbed to the big business lack of ethics. Apparently, they were bought out by Dean Foods just before this happened, so there was a change in ownership and thus a change in ethics. How sad that happens so often to the few tremendously successful and ethical small businesses, who build a consumer base largely on the combination of solid product and ethical production. So sad for us who have customer loyalty to those companies and don't get the memo about change in ownership. Everything LOOKS the same on the package, has the same name, etc., and we conscientiously choose the 'same' product based on incorrect beliefs. What a shame...
Insert movie times and more without leaving Hotmail®. See how.
No comments:
Post a Comment