Kim Kardashian celebrated her birthday with dozens of bouquets of flowers, but people on social media weren’t exactly impressed with the display of excessive consumption.
A Reddit user shared the video on the r/KUWTKsnark subreddit. Kardashian narrated the clip as she showed a room filled with a colorful array of gifted floral arrangements for her 45th birthday.
“Let them smell flowers,” Kardashian wrote as a caption (click here to view the post if the embed does not appear). While the media personality was thrilled about her birthday presents, most Reddit users were appalled at the excessive consumption on display.
“The tone deaf meter just shattered,” the original poster said.
“This is ridiculous,” one commenter wrote.
Kardashian received the flowers for her birthday, but consumers spend massive amounts on floral arrangements on various holidays.
Americans were expected to spend $34.1 billion for Mother’s Day this year, per the National Retail Federation. Nearly three-quarters of people buying gifts purchase flowers for the moms in their lives. However, cut flowers come with a significant environmental impact.
Many cut flowers are shipped to the United States from other countries using transportation that generates planet-overheating pollution, according to Petal & Poem. Not only do flowers require a substantial amount of water, but the pesticides and other toxic chemicals used can also contaminate the soil.
According to Sentient Media, overconsumption leads to the depletion of resources and contributes significant amounts of waste. Additionally, the production of goods releases pollution into the atmosphere. New technology, including social media, is one of the main drivers of overconsumption.
However, Kardashian’s social media post about her birthday flowers seemed to have the opposite effect on Reddit users — most of whom recognized the excess.
How often do celebrity endorsements affect your decision to buy a product?
Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.
“We don’t even get a normal bouquet of flowers from the supermarket because it costs too much,” one commenter said.
“All the waste!!!” another Redditor wrote. “People are literally hungry.”
Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don’t miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.