I have seen the following text and similar being shared in various posts on Facebook over a number of weeks.
Two can play that game China
Threaten our economy
All products from China will be left on the shelf !
Who’s With Me
However, there never seems to be any commentary from the person sharing the post as to how they actually propose to achieve this goal of not buying products that are made in China.
I believe that wherever possible we should be buying food produced in Australia. Fresh and unprocessed food are generally the best nutritional option. Additionally, packaged food may be produced in Australia but presented in packaging from China or elsewhere. It is highly unlikely that you would be able identify where the packaging was sourced.
Food is not the only thing that most of us buy. There are clothes, shoes, homewares and hardware supplies. When was the last time that you checked where your purchase was manufactured? Does it matter?
In my opinion, it is more important to be a conscious consumer generally rather than targeting goods from one particular country. Buy only what you need (not want), understand what is ‘enough’, care for and repair what you have and source pre-loved items where possible as ways of stepping away from over-consumption.
Over-consumption means that we are drowning in ‘stuff’ that is cheaply mass-produced in countries such as, but not exclusively, China. Become a conscious consumer and you will immediately significantly reduce the products you are buying from China.
Your thoughts?
organised castle 
A few years ago I read a fascinating book. It discussed food miles and the hidden processes that ramp up food miles. I wish I could remember the title. However, at that time, it had a story about salmon. Salmon caught in the Atlantic was frozen when caught, freighted to China where the fish were pin boned and portioned, refrozen and sent back to Europe. The multistage processes used in modern production, be it food or other goods, are mind boggling.
I think we do need to choose with care. I agree that older furniture is better than modern flatpack. I do believe we should buy Australian grown food as much as we possibly can. It would be nice if some politicians looked at how our bio security is being threatened and how much of Australia is now in the hands of other countries.
It does seem childish to say I am not going to blah, blah, blah. I think the approach you suggest is far more sustainable.
Good points. 🙂
Yes, it’s all very well to say we’re not supporting this and that but in reality we really don’t know what is involved and where some of the product – eg packaging for instance – comes from. Better to concentrate on quality, look after what you have and be selective in your shopping. ‘Stuff’ is taking us over – and that’s something that I don’t have or do, thank goodness. We grow some of our own, buy from the farm gate where possible, and generally try to keep it local – but sometimes that’s impossible so we just have to do the best we can.
Thanks for doing what you do. 🙂