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Pinkwashing (breast cancer)

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Not to be confused with Pinkwashing (LGBT).
Picture of a Pink ribbon

Pinkwashing is a form of cause marketing that uses pink ribbon logos. The companies display the pink ribbon logo on products that are known to cause different types of cancer. The Pink ribbon logo symbolizes support for breast cancer-related charities or foundations.[1]

The term 'pinkwashing' is associated with companies that use the pink ribbon symbol or use the support of breast cancer charities as a marketing technique, to promote one of their products, while at the same time manufactured products have proven to contain ingredients that are linked to the disease developed or are used in a manner that associates it with the increased risk of disease.

Origin of the pink ribbon

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The pink ribbon first originated from a woman named Charlotte Hayley in 1992. Charlotte hand made and dispensed peach colored ribbons with informational cards that read " The National Cancer Institute annual budget is $1.8 billion, only 5% goes for cancer prevention. Help us wake up our legislators and Americans by wearing this ribbon".[2] Companies such as Susan G. Komen had used the ribbon but the ribbons became most popular when Esteé Lauder agreed to place the bright pink ribbon on all the products across the United States.

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According to Breast Cancer Action, the following questions can help a consumer assess whether a company is engaging in pinkwashing:

  • How much money from the company is going to breast cancer awareness and/or research?
  • What organization will receive these funds?
  • Is there a cap on how much the company will donate?
  • Do the company's practices reflect the marketing done?[3]

As the largest organization monetizing breast cancer, the Susan G. Komen Foundation with its licensing of a proprietary trademark is running the "pink ribbon" logo and slogan on a wide range of products. It has drawn close scrutiny over 'pinkwashing' products.

One of NBCAM's largest supporters is the AstraZeneca Health Care Foundation: "Since the Foundation began, it has supported NBCAM's goals of public awareness, public education, knowledge sharing, and greater access to services in the fight against breast cancer."[4] However, some scholars question the true intentions of AstraZeneca, e.g., in P. C. Pezzullo's article, "Resisting 'National Breast Cancer Awareness Month': The Rhetoric of Counterpublics and their Cultural Performances". The Toxic Links Coalition (TLC) disapproves of AstraZeneca being NBCAM's initial supporter. For this reason, "TLC emphasizes the importance of stopping the production of carcinogenic toxic chemicals" (Pezzullo, p. 353). Komen promotions which have drawn criticism include Houston-based fracking equipment and vendor Baker Hughes, who sponsored $100,000 for a campaign with the tagline, "Doing their bit for a cure".[5] Opponents insist that hydraulic fracturing extracts oil and gas, using a mixture of water and chemicals, including known or possible carcinogens.[6] Similar concerns have been raised about automobile manufacturers as sponsors,[7] as vehicle exhaust contains carcinogens.[8]

Komen's own "Promise Me" perfume has also drawn the attention of Breast Cancer Action, as the label fails to disclose that the product contains galaxolide and toluene.[9]

The "pinkwashing" issue is not limited to Komen and its sponsors. In 2007, the Estée Lauder Pink Ribbon Collection series used a donation to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) to promote products containing parabens, which are linked to breast cancer. In 2012, the Food and Drug Administration connected 5-Hour Energy drinks - a caffeinated energy shot, promoted using a Living Beyond Breast Cancer (LBBC) sponsorship as cause marketing - to thirteen deaths and serious injuries, including heart attacks.[10]

In 2008, Think Before You Pink launched an online campaign against Yoplait, the national sponsor of Susan G. Komen's annual walk. Their pink-lidded yogurt was sold to raise money for breast cancer but was made from dairy containing the hormone rBGH or rBST (recombinant bovine growth hormone or recombinant bovine somatotrophin). With enough pressure from the public, General Mills (the manufacture of Yoplait) pledged to go rBGH-free.[11]

In 2010, Komen briefly partnered with Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) on a "Buckets for a Cure" campaign. In response, Breast Cancer Action launched the "What the Cluck?" campaign,[1] arguing that, although Komen's intentions may have been to promote KFC's new grilled chicken and vegetable meals, the same pink buckets held fried chicken, which can be attributed to high-fat diets linked to cancer risk and diseases. Komen contested and saw the marketing as effective because they were able to reach women who were not brought in by other advertisements in their neighbourhoods, like the billboards or the spokesperson at their church.[12] According to Komen, KFC's pink buckets of chicken helped raise $4 million, and "money from partnerships such as this allowed Komen to provide screening mammograms to 600,000 women last year".[13]

Target marketing

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Alcohol

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Drinking alcoholic beverages increases the risk of breast cancer.

Several studies indicate that the use of marketing by the alcohol industry to associate their products with breast cancer awareness campaigns, known as pinkwashing, is misleading and potentially harmful. Studies have found that this marketing strategy can increase perceptions of product healthfulness and social responsibility, leading to more favorable brand attitudes and reduced support for alcohol policies that could reduce consumption. However, there is evidence that informing the public about the contradictions and dangers of this practice can increase perceptions of misleadingness and support for measures like requiring cancer risk warning labels on alcoholic products. Overall, the research[vague] suggests that pinkwashed alcohol marketing exploits women's health concerns for commercial gain and undermines public health efforts to reduce alcohol-related harms.[14][15][16][17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Think Before You Pink » What the Cluck?!".
  2. ^ "History of the Pink Ribbon". Breast Cancer Action. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
  3. ^ "The Dangers of Pinkwashing: How to Spot When Companies Are Exploiting Breast Cancer for Profit". Good Housekeeping. 2022-02-17. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
  4. ^ "National Breast Cancer Awareness Month".
  5. ^ "Women's health advocates denounce Komen Foundation's partnership with Baker Hughes". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  6. ^ "Komen is supposed to be curing breast cancer. So why is its pink ribbon on so many carcinogenic products?". Washington Post.
  7. ^ ABC News. "Pink Washing Is Real and It Hurts [Commentary]". ABC News.
  8. ^ Hobson, Katherine (7 December 2011). "IOM Report Has Familiar List of Known Breast Cancer Risks". WSJ.
  9. ^ "Raise a Stink!".
  10. ^ "Breast Cancer Awareness Month Brings the Usual 'Pinkwashing' and Unethical Cause-Marketing Partnerships". The Huffington Post. 22 October 2014.
  11. ^ "Think Before You Pink » Yoplait: Put A Lid On It". thinkbeforeyoupink.org. Retrieved 2015-12-09.
  12. ^ Westervelt, Amy. "The Pinkwashing Debate: Empty Criticism or Serious Liability?". Forbes.
  13. ^ "Komen's pink ribbons raise lots of green, many questions; Survivors, groups ask world's largest charity fighting breast cancer to be more sensitive", USA TODAY' July 18, 2011.
  14. ^ Greene, NK; Rising, CJ; Seidenberg, AB; Eck, R; Trivedi, N; Oh, AY (May 2023). "Exploring correlates of support for restricting breast cancer awareness marketing on alcohol containers among women". The International Journal on Drug Policy. 115: 104016. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.104016. PMC 10593197. PMID 36990013.
  15. ^ Atkinson, AM; Meadows, BR; Sumnall, H (8 February 2024). "'Just a colour?': Exploring women's relationship with pink alcohol brand marketing within their feminine identity making". The International Journal on Drug Policy. 125: 104337. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2024.104337. PMID 38335868.
  16. ^ Hall, MG; Lee, CJY; Jernigan, DH; Ruggles, P; Cox, M; Whitesell, C; Grummon, AH (May 2024). "The impact of "pinkwashed" alcohol advertisements on attitudes and beliefs: A randomized experiment with US adults". Addictive Behaviors. 152: 107960. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2024.107960. PMC 10923020. PMID 38309239.
  17. ^ Mart, S; Giesbrecht, N (October 2015). "Red flags on pinkwashed drinks: contradictions and dangers in marketing alcohol to prevent cancer". Addiction. 110 (10): 1541–8. doi:10.1111/add.13035. PMID 26350708.
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