Some people say that supermarkets and manufacturers have a responsibility to reduce the amount of packaging on products they sell. Others believe that it is the consumer’s responsibility to avoid buying products which have a lot of packaging. Discuss both views and give your opinions.
Sample Response
It is often argued that curtailing the over-packaging of products is the responsibilityonus of supermarkets and manufacturers rather than consumers. From my point of view, I largely agree witham largely in agreement with the latter viewpoint.
On the one hand, supermarkets and manufacturers are responsible for using less packaging because they are the ones who have introducedinstituted unnecessary packaging on a large scale. There is no discernible reason, in light of its dire environmental impact, that toothpaste manufacturers have historically chosen to pack tubes in extra boxes or supermarkets have opted to wrap bananas and apples in Styrofoam trays, covered with plastic. These redundant practices contribute greatly to both the initial production of plastic and its subsequent disposal in landfills. Since supermarkets and manufacturers are the ones with the power to reform their own policies, it is only logical that they should be responsible.
On the other hand, only consumers can force the handhands of large corporations by boycotting their products. This is most clearly demonstrated in citiesThis is best evidenced in cities where it used to be common to package fruits and vegetables in plastic, such as Chiang Mai in Thailand. Local consumer-awareness campaignsConsumer awareness movements among locals have had a discernible impact on companies. It is now much more common to find unpackaged bananasbananas bare or simply wrapped in natural leaves and vegetables tied together with a single piece of string to lessen their environmental footprint. This same practice employed in cities around the world will have the largest possible impact on the environment.
In conclusion, the only pragmatic way to persuade shareholder-controlled corporations to reform packaging policies is by exertingputting consumer pressure on their bottom lines. If customers make more of an effort to steer clear of heavily packaged products in favour of more environmentally friendly alternativesenvironmentally conscious ones, this will lead to a shift in thinking aboutshift in thinking when it comes to the environmental toll of plastics.
Why this response received Band 8.0
The response fully discusses both perspectives, sustains a clear preference for consumer responsibility, and supports each view with specific, persuasive examples. Its main limitation is occasional overstatement, particularly the claim that consumer pressure is the only pragmatic solution, alongside a few dense formulations. The highest-priority improvement is to qualify absolute claims and make the final comparison between corporate power and consumer influence more explicitly balanced.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
Both views are thoroughly addressed, and the writer's position is clear, relevant, and well supported throughout.
Qualify absolute claims and explicitly weigh why consumer leverage ultimately outweighs direct corporate responsibility.
Coherence and Cohesion
The essay is logically organized, with clear paragraph purposes and cohesive progression from opposing responsibilities to the final judgement.
Make the transition into the final comparison slightly more explicit so the weighing of the two views is unmistakable.
Lexical Resource
A wide and precise vocabulary is used flexibly, with only occasional dense or slightly overstated phrasing.
Retain the sophisticated range while choosing more measured wording where absolute expressions add unnecessary force.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide variety of complex structures is handled with excellent control, and any minor slips do not impede communication.
Refine the occasional heavily embedded sentence to preserve the same accuracy with even greater readability.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people say that supermarkets and manufacturers have a responsibility to reduce the amount of packaging on products they sell. Others believe that it is the consumer’s responsibility to avoid buying products which have a lot of packaging. Discuss both views and give your opinions.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.