17 November 2010

Barcoo Gives Instant Access To A Brand's Social, Ethical And Environmental Profile, As Well As A Product’s Nutrition Info & Price Comparison

barcoo is a new mobile phone app designed to empower ethical consumers, as well as encourage a new generation of ethical shoppers. Free to download, barcoo includes all the traditional features of a barcode scanner as well as a new traffic light rating system for environmentally and health conscious shoppers.

In a world where companies are claiming to be socially and ethically responsible, this new free app gives consumers instant access to factual company information from a number of revered sources. By using the camera on a mobile phone to scan a product barcode, barcoo not only shows you a price comparison, it also tells you if the brand applies social responsibility to the manufacturing of its products. In addition to the manufacturer’s ethical profile, barcoo also provides nutritional information on food products.

So whether you want to know if a product or company is polluting the environment and to what extent, or if your favourite fish is on the endangered species list, barcoo is the ideal shopping companion. It gives complete real-time transparency, enabling shoppers to make more informed purchasing decisions. With 1.4 million users across mainland Europe, UK consumers can now join the barcoo revolution.

barcoo main features:

Sustainability traffic light system

barcoo has partnered with WeGreen to provide Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) information from over 20 international institutions that examine and validate social responsibility claims. barcoo’s unique traffic light system rates corporate social responsibility using a red, amber and green code. Shoppers have access to information about the level of a company’s environmental awareness and responsibility, how it treats its staff, as well as how transparent these messages are delivered to the consumer.

Nutritional traffic light system

The barcoo traffic light system has also been applied to the nutritional value of food products, allowing shoppers to quickly identify how healthy a product is. This feature provides dietary advice as well as nutritional values in grams per 100g. barcoo also includes a fish guide whereby consumers can scan a fish product and retrieve guidance from the International Seafood Guide and the WWF on whether the fish in question is on the endangered species list.

Price comparison, local stores map

Expanding upon the practice of internet comparison shopping, barcoo takes savvy shopping to the high street by enabling shoppers to compare pricing on similar products online or within the local area and displays alternative locations to shop on a map.

Product reviews + Scan Ticker

barcoo displays product test reviews provided by the most trusted consumer magazines and feedback from other shoppers to empower the user with third party opinion. Embedded in the application is a live review of scans made by other barcoo users showing the most popular products scanned per product category. Live market research is provided by the ScanTicker which shows what products are being scanned and commented on in real-time, enabling barcoo users to share shopping trends, information and tips.

“barcoo has been designed to encourage consumers to look deeper into the sustainability of the products they consume,” says barcoo founder, Benjamin Thym. “Companies boast about the positive attributes of their organisation and its products in their marketing material and advertising campaigns which plays a large part in our purchasing decisions. Having information to hand that gives a more detailed picture of the brand, including its sustainability and ethics, will not only empower the shopper but will also push manufacturers towards further embracing the growing trend of being more green and ethical.”