Would you pay USD $13 for A Chocolate Bar? What if I told you it was 'green' & sustainable? ;-) (pic via Wikipedia)
For comparison, I think a Hershey bar is 1.55 oz (43g), the Original Beans bar is much bigger at 3.5 oz. I guess it's a good racket if you can get it.
What Is The True Cost of Chocolate?: TreeHugger: "Pioneering chocolate company Original Beans has based their business model on true cost pricing, including often overlooked ecological and social costs. 'The mental inspiration comes from the challenge of building a business that results in more than zero sum, and actually gives back more to the Earth than it takes,' says company co-founder Philipp Kauffmann. With a marketplace used to cheap food, pricing a product based on what it actually costs to maintain a sustainable industry can seem outrageous. A 3.5oz bar from Original Beans costs the consumer $13. I'll admit sticker shock when I first heard that price as well, but once Kauffmann explained what goes on behind the scenes at Original Beans I was sold on paying the true environmental and social cost for my chocolate."
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Would You Pay USD $13 For A Chocolate Bar?
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3 comments:
"I'll admit sticker shock when I first heard that price as well, but once Kauffmann explained what goes on behind the scenes at Original Beans I was sold on paying the true environmental and social cost for my chocolate."
Every time I think that people can't possibly get any stupider, someone comes along and proves me wrong.
On the other hand, it won't surprise me to be paying $13 FRN for a Hershey bar in the not too distant future.
I give these guys credit for providing an excellent data point by demonstrating the true cost of being sustainable/green. They're accurately testing the market for this type of product. Let's see if anyone bites.
Joe, I think the argument they are making is that the price of the inputs does not accurately take into account all of the true costs, resulting in negative externalities. I'm not sure I buy it.
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