Influx

A nice contrary thought from John Thackara.

“INNOVATION IS NOT GOOD IN ITSELF – IN FACT, MORE INNOVATION DOES HARM, THAN DOES GOOD.

My evidence for this statement is contained in a breathless announcement from Mintel,
the market research company, that a “Record-Breaking Number of New
Products Flood Global CPG Shelves” and that (the numbers are for 2006)
“close to 182,000 new products were introduced globally, with key
booming areas focusing on mind, body, and general good health”.

Well over half of these of these innovations – 105,000, to be
precise – were food and drink products. This flood of innovations
enable us to profit from such trends as “brainpower foods, age-defying
treatments, increases in portion control, and “just for you” customised
products”.

Now I may have misunderstood something here, but surely the Mintel
numbers mean that more than half the innovations that reach the market
all over the world – 300 innovations, every single day of the year -
decrease the resource efficiency and hence sustainability of global
food systems?

Good, so that’s Innovation dealt with. Bring on the next killer word!”

However, shouldn’t innovators now consider the social and environmental responsibility of their actions?

If they do, innovations shouldn’t be product launches for the sake of it, but new products that improve upon the social and environmental footprints of their predecessors and then innovation would be a good thing?

Posted by Ed Cotton