What ethical issues is Alyssia facing in this situation

Alyssia Franklin is a marketing manager for Oré Earth Skin Care. Four years ago, when she was hired to help
with promotional campaigns, she was thrilled because she loved Oré Earth’s products. Above all else, Oré Earth
products spoke to Alyssia’s values: promising all natural ingredients, using only sustainable, environmentally
friendly practices. For Alyssia, going to work was like carrying out a mission, promoting both beauty and
concern for the planet’s well-being. No doubt, her commitment and enthusiasm helped pave the way for her
promotion to marketing manager.
Currently, Alyssia and her team are preparing a promotional campaign for a new product line, Oré Essentials,
which includes lipsticks, foundation, and eye shadows tinted with a plant extract called orellana. The exciting
feature of Oré Essentials is that orellana is harvested deep in the Amazon rain forest, and because of its
sustainable practices, Oré Earth will obtain this special ingredient in a socially responsible manner.
The company set up a contract with a tribe living in a remote village. The people of the tribe are supposed to
grow and harvest the orellana, which is part of the area’s ecosystem, and Oré Earth has promised to pay a fair
price to the whole tribe so the people can maintain their village and their way of life. Consumers will get a
beautiful product and the pleasure of knowing that they are helping preserve an endangered rain forest ecology
and its people.
But when Alyssia sat down for a meeting with the photography crew that traveled to the village, some concerns
began to surface. She was looking at stunning photos of tribe members arrayed in grass skirts as they stood
behind a pile of fruit from the orellana tree. As she was selecting her favorite shots, one of the photographers
commented that the translator had made some surprising remarks on the return trip from the village. Apparently
the pile of orellana fruit had been gathered just for the photo shoot. The tribe doesn’t really bother with growing
and harvesting orellana; the people of this area aren’t primarily farmers, and there aren’t actually many orellana
trees within a day’s walk of the village. The first year the tribe had tried selling orellana to Oré Earth, it grew
only enough to earn a few hundred dollars. Confused, Alyssia decided to take a closer look at the financials for
this product line.
She found purchasing transactions for “orellana/annatto,” and after a little research learned that under either
name, the product is just an inexpensive dye. In fact, under the latter name, it is used as a common food
coloring. It turns out that Oré Earth made most of its purchases from a mainstream supplier, which is far cheaper
than persuading remote villagers to provide orellana. Alyssia felt betrayed and upset.
The next day she asked her boss, the divisional vice president, why the company pretended to care about a
remote village if it was just a front for a brand. Her boss replied, “But we do care! We send them tens of
thousands of dollars every year. Sure, they don’t actually grow that stuff for us, but they could, and we’ll buy it
if they do. Anyway, our aid has provided a school and a health clinic, not to mention food and clothing. We’ve
helped the tribe members stay healthy and preserve their language and culture.”151
Alyssia considered what her boss said. She thought about the traditional designs the marketing department had
copied from the tribe as decorations for the Oré Essentials packaging. “So,” Alyssia asked, “does this mean
we’re using their culture to build an image for our brand, and, in exchange, they get money to keep their culture
alive?”
Her boss nodded encouragingly. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. It’s a win–win situation.” Alyssia felt
somewhat better, but she left the office unsure still of what to make of this revelation.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What ethical issues is Alyssia facing in this situation? What possible marketing claims about the
company’s relationship with the Amazonian tribe would cross a line into unethical territory? What claims
could it make ethically?
2. How could Oré Earth create an ethical climate that would help managers such as Alyssia ensure that they
are behaving ethically?
3. How effectively do you think Oré Earth is practicing corporate social responsibility in this situation?
Explain the reasoning behind your evaluation.