Plastic Free July: Selling Plastic

So common is this material that it made me wonder when it became such a staple. I decided to have a dig around in our resource Market Research and American Business, 1935-1965 (because I think it’s safe to assume we can always blame advertising for convincing us we need things we do not), to see if there were any reports on the introduction of everyday disposable material.

As luck would have it, I found A Proposal for A Motivation Research Study of Consumer Attitudes Toward Disposable Cups and Plates - - Paper, Plastic, Paper-Plastic Combinations and “Other Synthetics”. Catchy title aside, this turned out to be a fascinating proposal from 1965 from the advertising company representing the Dixie Cup wanting to investigate whether disposable cups and plates were a momentary fad or here to stay. They also wanted to explore whether a disposable culture in general had longevity and if this was a movement worth investing in.

To find these answers, they proposed a two-stage process which would first consider overall attitudes to plastic and disposables before moving onto cups and plates specifically. To answer the questions, they would take groups of housewives from specific areas of the US in set age and wealth brackets to gauge reactions across class and age divides. They would only ask housewives for their opinions, because apparently in 1965 only women were invested in plates and cups.

This description of the process is very interesting from a marketing point of view, but it was the questions they wanted the thoughts and answers to that grabbed my attention. The housewives would be asked for their definition of disposable – what would they be willing to throw away? What did they think of disposable plastics or other material in general? Were these luxury items? Did they associate them with inferior items? What role did the husband have in deciding if these items were bought? Who is the housewife that would be willing to throw cups and plates away? Is she secure, insecure, morally responsible, an innovator or a follower?

So many questions to ask – more questions than most of us would ask before throwing away a plastic cup or plate. Looking back, it appears that the marketers worked out a way to develop items that we are happy to dispose of, with no questions as to what kind of housewife it made us. Plastic Free July is part of the movement to change this thinking and return to a less disposable focused culture.

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