Ethical goods still proving popular

Despite the economic troubles, the sale of ethical goods has increased according to the Co-operative’s annual report into ethical consumerism. Charlotte Reid looks at the report.

New figures show that sales of ethical goods are worth £46.8 billion, a 9% increase from last year’s report.

The sales in ethical food and drink increased by 5.1%, Fairtrade food sales went up by 36%, and the sales of fish from sustainable sources grew by 16.3%.

Paul Monaghan, head of Social Goals at the Co-operative, said, “During the downturn we’ve seen some of the biggest ever Fairtrade conversions, be it in chocolate or sugar, and business is beginning to respond to the challenge to provide consumers with more sustainable products and services such as fish, palm oil and soya.”

However, sales of organic food slumped by 10%.

Although that is disappointing news, there has been more of an interest in a wide variety of ethical products.

Green car sales went up by 129% from £307 million to £846 million. In recent months, Blue & Green Tomorrow looked at the latest attempts to make driving more environmentally friendly.

There has also been an increase in people putting their money into ethical savings and investments. The sector now stands at £21.1 billion, compared to £19.3 billion last year.   

The report also revealed a growing trend in green funerals. Money spent on ethical funerals went up by 34%, worth £6.9 million.

Although Monaghan is pleased with the improvements he said “Let’s not lose sight of the fact that ethical sales remain a small proportion of total sales.

“Ultimately, over and above the efforts of responsible business and ethical consumers, sustainable solutions require a government committed to long-term intervention, such as an effective feed-in-tariff programme, to maintain the economic viability of the micro-generation market.”

If you are interested in shopping ethically then we recommend using The Ethical Superstore. Or if you want to know more about sustainable investments then ask your financial adviser. Or let us help you out with our online form.