Ethical shopping
Are we finally getting it?
This week it has been announced that sales of Fairtrade goods have broken the £1bn barrier for the first time despite fears that recessionary pressures would persuade British consumers to put price before ethics.
Does this suggest that we are finally getting it?
The Growth in sales of bananas, chocolate, coffee (the most common Fair Trade items) and other products under the Fair Trade banner has climbed from £836m in 2009 to £1.17bn in 2010. So it would appear on first look that this is indeed the case.
Launching Fairtrade Fortnight, the organisation said that on a daily basis Britons now consume 9.3m cups of tea and 3.1m bananas stamped with its ethical mark. Fairtrade aims to support farmers and workers in the developing world by paying at least market prices for their produce. So it’s a good thing – no argument there. But is it social conscience or something else driving this?
In reality Fair Trade sales in Britain appear to have been boosted by the backing of the big retailers. In particular, Sainsbury’s, the world’s largest Fairtrade retailer, hopes to nearly double sales to £500m by 2015 while the Co-operative Group is increasing the number of Fairtrade product lines as part of a three-year ethical strategy (that I blogged about last week).
So perhaps the large supermarkets are finally beginning to ‘get it’? Let’s hope so – although the likes of Tesco and Asda still have a long way to go.
If the general public find Fair Trade as a regular item in their trolley this can only increase its acceptance – and perhaps finally make it ‘main stream’ rather than something purchased by others.
Here’s hoping!
An ethical shopping App
so, I am trying to stop looking at new Apps for my iPhone – even the free ones. But then along comes a ‘nice App’ that is ethical – got to be a rare thing in this world – do I buy it?
The Ethical Company Organisation’s best-selling Good Shopping Guide has been turned into an app, using its ethical product research which aims to cut through corporate “greenwash”. The ethical shopping advice will initially be available for use on iPhone, iPod touch and iPad at £2.99. Ten per cent of net revenue will go to green campaigners Friends of the Earth.
The app lists over 700 well-known brands, ranked in 72 product-specific league tables under seven main sections, from food and drink to health and beauty to travel and energy. A summary table shows “the good, the bad and the ugly” brands in relation to the environment, human rights and animal welfare. Points scores give an overall “ethical rating” to easily identify the best performing brands and companies.
The launch last year of Barcoo, which allowed customers to scan the barcode of products in shops and find out how environmentally friendly a company is, or how it treats its staff was the first app of this type. The new app does not use barcode technology, as the developers felt too many smaller and newer brands would “slip through the net” – good thinking.
Although there is growing awareness of the benefits of fair trade and organic goods it is fair to say that consumers still need help in getting an overall ethical footprint of the product and the company behind the brand. It is sometimes surprising to find that there is not a price premium on ethical goods.
Popularity is no predictor of a high ethical score in the guide. In the tea section, the UK’s biggest brand, Tetley Tea, scores an Ethical Company Index (ECI) rating of just 57 out of a 100, compared with Cafédirect Tea (100), Yorkshire Tea (96) and Typhoo (91).
I feel myself wavering!
Simon Dare's Blog 