Ethical Consumer, Issue 184, May/June 2020

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£4·25 184 May/June 2020 www.ethicalconsumer.org

Washing your hands of bad business

We name the best companies to support during the pandemic

How is Covid-19 affecting workers’ rights? SHOPPING GUIDES TO l Soap l Shower gel l Shampoo l Sunscreen 2 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 ETHICAL CONSUMER Editorial WHO’S WHO e hope that this magazine have started a Crowdfunder to raise THIS ISSUE’S EDITOR Tim Hunt finds you safe and well in money to help get essentials delivered to PROOFING Ciara Maginness (Little Blue Pencil) WRITERS/RESEARCHERS Jane Turner, Tim Hunt, these extraordinary times. people, alongside unions and grassroots Rob Harrison, Anna Clayton, Josie Wexler, For many, this is a period organisers operating in the area who Ruth Strange, Mackenzie Denyer, Clare Carlile, Wof extreme distress and anxiety. Loved we have come to know through our Francesca de la Torre, Alex Crumbie, Tom Bryson, ones may be sick, money may be tight, work. More details can be found on page Billy Saundry, Jasmine Owens REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Simon Birch, Colin Birch and mental health may be suffering. The 47 and we hope that you will be in a DESIGN Tom Lynton list of problems caused by coronavirus position to donate, if you haven’t already. LAYOUT Adele Armistead (Moonloft), Jane Turner could fill a magazine (or a book). The generosity shown by many people COVER Tom Lynton In this issue, we’ve looked in depth at in the first hours of this appeal, (we CARTOONS Marc Roberts, Andy Vine, Mike Bryson, the impact of the coronavirus (and the reached our first target after just 4 Richard Liptrot subsequent lockdown) on the workers hours), also perhaps points towards the AD SALES Simon Birch SUBSCRIPTIONS Elizabeth Chater, who supply our modern consumer possibilities for a post-Covid world – a Francesca Thomas, Nadine Oliver markets, both in the UK and abroad. It’s world where solidarity becomes the PRESS ENQUIRIES Simon Birch, Tim Hunt clear that some of those on the lowest norm, key workers in our supply chains ENQUIRIES Francesca Thomas incomes and in the most precarious are treated with respect, taxes are WEB EDITOR Sophie Billington jobs are currently suffering at the paid by all, and our social institutions THANKS ALSO TO Marlous Veldt, Emma Kerrison hands of unscrupulous employers and are properly funded. Maybe even the All material correct one month before cover date large corporations with the power to do government’s strategy to rebuild the and © Ethical Consumer Research Association Ltd. ISSN 0955 8608 almost as they please in our increasingly economy will incorporate a green libertarian society. new deal? Or perhaps I’m just overly Printed with vegetable ink by RAP Spiderweb Ltd, c/o the Commercial Centre, Clowes Centre, We’ve seen strikes and consumer optimistic? Hollinwood, Oldham OL9 7LY. 0161 947 3700 boycotts take place across the word, In this magazine, we’ve also tried to PAPER 100% post-consumer waste, chlorine-free as people have reacted to the worst adapt our guides to be more relevant and sourced from the only UK paper merchant excesses of a capitalist system which to the current pandemic. This is one supplying only recycled papers – Paperback has too often put profit over the health of the reasons the magazine has been (www.paperbackpaper.co.uk) and safety of its workforce and, indeed, delivered later than you might have RETAIL DISTRIBUTION is handled by Central Books on 0845 458 9911. its consumers. Thankfully some of expected, and we apologise for this. Ethical Consumer is a member of INK these have seen successes – perhaps We’ve added soap into the mix as this (independent news collective), an association of most notably, the boycott Wetherspoons has become one of the most important radical and alternative publishers. campaign covered on page 41. Of tools in our struggle against coronavirus, www.ink.uk.com course, some workers are in a much and ethical options abound in this We are a Living Wage employer, a multi-stakeholder worse position than others. One group market. co-op, and Fair Tax Mark accredited. mentioned on page 42, and that we’ve We’ve also modified our guides to focused on over the past 18 months, are shampoo and sunscreen for the the migrant fruit pickers in Andalusia, lockdown period. Spain. However, we understand that it may Often living in hastily constructed be more difficult than usual to shop settlements without access to running ethically with some stores closed and water, the impact on these others experiencing delivery problems. communities has been Our advice is to try where you can, but ABOUT THE ADVERTISERS disastrous. Many are now not to feel guilty if it’s no longer possible ECRA checks out advertisers before accepting their without work as farms for you at this moment. Stay well and ads and reserves the right to refuse any advert close, and are finding it stay safe. Anything else is a bonus. COVERED IN PREVIOUS PRODUCT GUIDES Abundance increasingly difficult You can find more coronavirus- (177), Friendly Soap (184), Infinity Wholefoods to access essentials related content online by visiting (178), Kingfisher Toothpaste (165), THTC (180), Vegetarian Shoes (162). in Spain’s (perhaps the Ethical Consumer website OTHER ADVERTISERS Amnesty International, Bhopal necessarily) harsh and searching for ‘coronavirus’. Campaign, Energy4All, Friends Of the Earth, lockdown. Green Building Store, Green Stationery, Investing To help alleviate some Ethically, Juno, Railway Kids, The Idler. of their suffering, and in TIM HUNT a spirit of solidarity, we EDITOR

WHAT IS ETHICAL CONSUMER? Democratise the market by enabling Push for wider political action and 2consumers to assert their own ethical 5legislative change. Ethical consumerism is We are an independent, not-for-profit, multi- values by using our shopping guides. not a replacement for other forms of political stakeholder co-operative founded in 1989 action. But it is an important additional way and based in Manchester. Our primary goal is Have a fully transparent ranking system. All for people to exert their influence. making global businesses more sustainable 3our data is available to subscribers. through consumer pressure. Our mission is to: HOW TO CONTACT US Engage with companies by telling them why Unit 21, 41 Old Birley Street, Manchester, M15 5RF Help consumers to challenge corporate we are buying or not buying their products. 4 0161 226 2929 — 10-5pm 1 power by using their economic vote every We also send them detailed questions about [email protected] — general time they go shopping. their policy and practice on ethical issues. [email protected] — subscriptions

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4 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 ETHICAL CONSUMER Contents

46 FEATURE SHOPPING GUIDES

42 COVID-19 and workers’ Soap and shower gel rights 10 Introduction from garment workers to gig workers to government measures 11 bars vs liquid 12 SOAP Score Table & Best 42 Buys 14 SHOWER GEL Score Table & Best Buys 10

NEWS

06 Food & Home carbon labelling, circular electronics, petition to Lidl REGULARS Shampoo 08 Climate 18 Introduction Heathrow halted, Carbon Coop, tilting 30 Ethical Novice 20 Score Table & Best Buys to green flailing with sunscreen 19 tax avoidance - ethically 40 Boycotts 48 Gift subscriptions absurd protests against Amazon and Give a gift subscription to Ethical 23 going ‘no poo’ Wetherspoons Consumer

45 Beyond Consumerism 49 Letters Sunscreen donations-based meal delivery A regular forum for readers’ views 24 Introduction 46 Money 50 Inside view 26 Score Table & Best Buys is your money supporting fossil fuels? windfarms on the horizon 25 chemical, mineral and nano 47 Crowdfunder for Almeria 28 coral bleaching and the crowdfunding for vital supplies in 31 Hawaiian ban on sunscreen southern Spain 23 47

31 Palm oil 33 Organic and natural 32 Animal Testing 35 Toxic chemicals 36 Microplastics 38 Ethical toiletries under lockdown

ethicalconsumer.org 5 NEWS Food & Home Health warnings for climate-killing VIVA! BILLBOARD products CAMPAIGN To “reduce the risk of a rapid rebound in greenhouse gas emissions as the economy expands” after the coronavirus crisis, a group of public health experts want to see health warnings on high- carbon products. Writing in the British Medical Journal, the experts have said that high-carbon products, like petrol pumps and airline tickets, should carry graphic smoking- style warnings showing consumers the health impacts of the climate crisis. High-carbon health labels could highlight the damage to health from air pollution caused by fossil fuels, such as the exhaust gases from diesel vehicles. Billboards, from Viva!, asking people ‘When did you last kill an They could include pictures of damaged animal?’ and ‘What’s your favourite animal to eat?’ have now lungs, or highlight severe weather such been seen at 60 busy bus stops and other billboard locations as flooding, or show the bodies of people across eight towns and cities in the East Midlands. who have died because of heatwaves, said Now Viva! want to expand the campaign across the whole Mike Gill, a former regional director of of the UK, when the time is right. If you would like to see vegan public health for south-east England. billboards in your area, you can donate to the campaign – Previous attempts to put labels on www.viva.org.uk/get-involved/choose-vegan-billboards goods that showed the amount of carbon that went into their production petered out. A handful of big companies used the New guide to honey Carbon Trust’s carbon footprint label, including Tesco which ditched it in 2012 We have recently published a shopping guide to honey on our website. It covers 28 citing the amount of work involved and brands and answers questions such as: other supermarkets failing to follow its l Which companies have the best bee welfare policies? lead. The Carbon Trust lost its coalition l Why isn’t honey vegan? government funding in 2012. l What’s wrong with conventional beekeeping? l How to buy ‘better’ honey l What’s the fuss about manuka honey? Check it out at www.ethicalconsumer.org/food-drink/shopping-guide/honey HARROGATE SPRING BOUGHT BY DANONE EU proposes to turn Fairphone’s philosophy

Bottled water brand Harrogate Spring into legislation has been bought by French food In March, the EU Commission presented multinational Danone. The sale means a ‘Circular Electronics’ proposal which that Harrogate Spring’s score nearly will require manufacturers to make halves, dropping from 11 to 6.5. electronics that are easily repairable and Danone makes half of its money recyclable. from dairy products like Activia and Many of the proposals have long been plant-based products like Alpro and advocated by Fairphone and have been Provamel. It already owns Badoit, implemented by them in the absence of Evian and Volvic. Danone is also the legislation. Fairphone set out to change world’s second biggest baby milk the electronics industry from the inside company and has been criticised for and has made removable batteries, repairability and recyclability for the its irresponsible marketing of infant repairable and modular phones and smartphone – and the electronics industry formula in breach of international longer-term software support the norm for as a whole. With this announcement, our standards. its devices. mission statement has been taken up at However, our guide to bottled water Miquel Ballester, Fairphone’s Circular the highest level and could be turned into suggested that you ditch bottled water Innovation Lead comments: “The Circular legislation. This will go a long way in helping in favour of tap water in refillable Electronics proposal from the EU is such to solve the e-waste problem that has been bottles. an exciting moment for Fairphone. From so detrimental to the environment, creating the beginning, we’ve promoted modularity, a market that is more sustainable.”

6 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 NEWS Food & Home

IS LILY'S KITCHEN STILL ETHICAL?

Lily's Kitchen, the popular organic cat and dog food brand, has been taken over by Swiss multinational Nestlé. Nestlé is the largest food company in the world, and well-known target of the Baby Milk Action boycott. So how does this takeover affect Lily’s Kitchen's ethical score? Due to its acquisition by Nestlé in April 2020, Lily's Kitchen now loses marks in our rating system in a number of new categories, including palm oil, supply chain management, animal testing, and political activities. This means that Lily's Kitchen now scores 0.5 out of 14 (as of April 2020). Before its takeover by Nestlé it scored 12.5 out of 14. Lily’s Kitchen was previously one of our Recommended brands but is sadly now one of our ‘Brands to avoid’. Check out our pet food guides for the Best Buys and Recommended brands – www.ethicalconsumer.org/food-drink/shopping- guide/cat-food & /dog-food The hidden victims of fast fashion – look out for our new series of cartoons each issue. Menstrual products news Oxfam petition delivered to Lidl The ‘Tampon Tax’ is finally going to be A petition with 20,000 signatures UK supermarkets (scored 9% on Oxfam’s scrapped. VAT on all women’s menstrual urging Lidl to do more to protect the Supermarkets Scorecard), replacing products will be abolished from 2021. workers behind its food was presented Aldi – the previous lowest scorer – which Tampons and other women’s sanitary to the company’s head office by Oxfam jumped from a score of 1% to 19% products currently attract 5% VAT. campaigners dressed as giant fruit and following Oxfam's campaigning last year. The decision marks a victory in the vegetables. It seems the fastest-growing companies 20-year campaign by women’s groups The petition is part of Oxfam’s Behind in the UK market – the discounters – have against 50-year-old VAT rules that once the Barcodes campaign which aims to been the slowest to make meaningful categorised tampons as ‘non-essential, improve the lives of the millions of people commitments. With 10,000 stores in 32 luxury items’. around the world producing food for countries in Europe and North America, “It is good to see the tampon tax supermarkets, many of whom are trapped Lidl (like Aldi) has significant power – finally removed, thanks to the work of in poverty and face brutal working and responsibility – to tackle worker period poverty campaigners” said Sam conditions. exploitation. Smethers, the chief executive of the In the UK, the campaign is aimed at Check out the scorecard at Fawcett Society. “Now manufacturers the six major UK supermarkets: Tesco, https://oxfamapps.org/behindthebarcodes need to pass the saving on to the women Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi and where you can also send a message to the and girls who rely on these products.” Lidl. six supermarkets. Meanwhile, Lil-lets is launching an eco Lidl is currently bottom of Oxfam’s See how Lidl compares to the other range of organic and plastic-free tampons scorecard which assesses the supermarkets across all our categories in and pads. The move was influenced by supermarkets policies and practices on our shopping guide – ‘The End Period Plastic’ campaign lead by human rights in their supply chains. www.ethicalconsumer.org/retailers/ Ella Daish. Lidl is the new laggard amongst the shopping-guide/supermarkets In EC179, we highlighted three companies who only made organic and plastic-free disposables – Natracare, TOTM and Kind Organic. That guide recommended reusable products such as menstrual cups, washable pads and tampons, and period pants. Check it out at www.ethicalconsumer. org/health-beauty/shopping-guide/ sanitary-products You can sign Ella’s petition at www.change.org/p/make-all-menstrual- Rebecca Lonsdale/Oxfam Rebecca products-plastic-free ©

ethicalconsumer.org 7 NEWS Climate A glimpse of the possible

A recent report by European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) economists presents the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to “tilt to green” the large-scale recovery spending being pledged. It recommends that governments seeking to protect their citizens medically and economically in the short term should also look to the long term and protect the environment for the same reasons. It goes on to reflect on the experience of the 2008-9 financial crisis during which global greenhouse gas emissions initially dropped (as they have in recent weeks), as normal economic activity stalled. They then quickly rebounded in 2010 and have been rising steadily since. The report’s authors commented that, “Climate change, biodiversity loss, and financial collapses share some similarities with COVID-19: they do not observe national or even physical borders and they can be managed only through collective action that starts long before they become full-blown crises. Moreover, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and climate change make pandemics more likely. Likewise, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warns that global warming will likely accelerate the emergence of new viruses.”1

Barclays fossil fuel ties continue

In March 2020, Greenpeace activists shut down nearly 100 Barclays branches2 in protest against the bank’s continued multi-billion-dollar support for fossil fuels. Greenpeace are demanding that Barclays, the biggest funder of fossil fuels among European banks, stop propping up oil, gas and coal companies and channel funding into renewable energy. Barclays is the biggest funder of fossil fuels amongst banks in Europe, backing polluters to the tune of $85 billion between 2016 and 2018. This includes huge sums globally for some of the dirtiest fuels such as coal and tar sands and fracking companies. The Bank, under increasing pressure from investors to stop offering loans to fossil fuel companies, issued a ‘net zero carbon’ statement in March that has been criticised for its lack of detail. Greenpeace UK's climate finance adviser, Charlie Kronick, commented: “Barclays remains Europe’s largest financier of these planet-heating industries and refuses to face up to the reality of the climate emergency and their role in fuelling it. Until it realises that getting to net zero means ambitious action to phase out support for Heathrow’s expansion all fossil fuels, this newly proposed resolution is absolutely meaningless.” plans halted The UK Government’s decision to expand Heathrow Airport has been ruled “unlawful” by the Court of Appeal on climate change grounds following a successful legal challenge by environmental organisation Friends of the Earth, represented by Leigh Day. One of the Court’s key findings was that the Secretary of State for Transport (Chris Grayling) had failed to give due consideration to the UK’s commitments to reduce carbon emissions under the Paris Agreement, which was legally fatal to the official permission given, which must now be rewritten to include a credible climate plan.

References: 1 RegionalEconomicProspects Apr2020. Download from https://www.ebrd.com/news/2020/coronavirus-to-lead- to-significant-economic-contraction-across-ebrd-regions.html 2 https://media.greenpeace.org/collection/27MZIFJ83S4UM 3 www.ran.org/press-releases/bankingonclimatechange_2020 4

8 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 NEWS Climate

BANKING ON CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE SMART HOME… A new report highlights how global banks have funnelled $2.7 trillion into fossil SMART EXPORT GUARANTEE fuels since the Paris Climate Agreement, with financing on the rise each year. A huge number of householders took advantage of the Government’s solar Feed ‘Banking on Climate Change 2020’, in Tariff (FIT) to subsidise the costs of photovoltaic (PV) panels but, with the tariff released by a collective of campaign scrapped for new customers, does its new replacement, the Smart Export Guarantee groups, reviews the lending and (SEG), make solar viable again? underwriting to 2,100 companies across In a new regular column, JONATHAN ATKINSON of Carbon Co-op peers into some of the coal, oil and gas sectors globally the complexities we face in the transition to low carbon homes. during 2016-2019. The big US banks – JPMorgan Chase, Launched on 1st January 2020, the your patterns of usage/generation to see if Wells Fargo, Citi, and Bank of America Smart Export Guarantee is an obligation you can benefit. – continue to dominate the financing placed on energy suppliers to pay So, does SEG make solar panels of fossil fuels, accounting for 30% of all householders for any clean energy they affordable? In part yes, SEG helps subsidise fossil fuel financing from the 35 major generate on site and export to the wider the upfront cost of domestic panels but we global banks since the Paris Agreement grid. The SEG is most likely to be used will never return to the FIT world where was adopted. for solar but micro-wind, batteries and solar panels became a money-making In addition, the report assessed these electric vehicles that inject power to investment opportunity. institutions on their restrictions on the grid are all eligible. One thing you For an average-sized domestic system, financing for fossil fuel expansion and will need is a SMETS2 smart meter it’s likely to be worth £50-£100 a year their commitments to phase-out fossil to accurately track the electricity you depending on how you use your system fuel financing in order to prevent global export in half hourly chunks. (this is around 50-60% less than you might temperatures from exceeding a 1.5°C Though still a subsidy, the SEG better have received under FIT). increase. No major banks were found reflects the market need of energy Instead, solar panels are best viewed to be even close to meeting these goals, suppliers to source electricity to sell to as a refurbishment and maintenance despite several recent, high-profile customers and creates a mechanism investment in your home. They offer the policy announcements from financial for householders to benefit from their utility of on-site, clean power generation institutions. generation just like any other provider of helping to fix and, in many cases, reduce power. The government doesn’t set the your overall power costs across their 25- Take action prices suppliers must pay, instead it’s a 30-year lifespan. When combined with l Earth Day Switch has launched competitive market and householders electric vehicles, battery storage, hot water a global digital action to end fossil should shop around to get the best deals power diversion and schemes like SEG, they fuel investments. Its platform, in terms of rewards and contract length. form an important part of a whole-house Earthdayswitch.org, provides an easy way It’s mainly relevant for new solar energy strategy. for individuals, businesses and NGOs to installations but SEG can also replace Contact suppliers to assess their SEG shift money to greener banks and energy the export element of FIT (but not offers but Bulb, Octopus and Ovo are among services. You could also use Ethical the generation element) for existing those offering the best deals currently. Consumer’s guides to finance and energy installations. Depending on how you Bulb score 13, Octopus 8.5, Ovo 7 on providers to inform your switching use power from your PV, other micro- Ethical Consumer’s electricity guide – choices. generation, and storage it may be worth www.ethicalconsumer.org/energy/ l The perfect challenge for a lockdown: switching, but it is important to assess shopping-guide/gas-electricity see www.52climateactions.com

ethicalconsumer.org 9 SHOPPING GUIDE Soap and shower gel Washing your hands of bad business

At a time when soap is even more of an essential purchase, we tell you which are the cleanest brands to buy.

A fully referenced version of this Product Guide is on our website

10 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 Soap and coronavirus and Dove are owned by multinational The environmental impact of solid Unilever whilst Carex is owned by PZ bars vs liquid soap Everyone now knows that one of Cussons which also owns other top From an environmental point of view, the most effective ways to avoid the selling brands. the bar of soap is the overall winner. It transmission of COVID-19 is to wash With everyone buying more soap at also tends to have a smaller list of simple your hands thoroughly with soap and the moment, these companies are doing ingredients. water, cold or hot, the important thing is particularly well. The environmental impact of liquid the lather. soap is thought to be higher due to the This is because the coronavirus fact it is: COVID-19 is held together by an outer Why bars are best Heavier: Containing lots of water, layer made of fat. When this fat comes liquid soaps are likely to be heavier than into contact with soap – or any detergent, Whilst hand sanitisers, antibacterial bar soap, resulting in a higher carbon including washing-up liquid – it breaks soaps and liquid soaps have sold out, the footprint for transportation. the virus apart, rendering it harmless. humble bar of soap has been left on the More packaging: Packaging for body But which is the most ethical brand shelf. washes and liquid soaps tend to be plastic of soap to buy? And should I buy a bar of People generally tend to buy more bottles that end up in landfill or our soap, liquid soap or hand sanitiser? This liquid soap products for hand washing oceans. Even if the bottle is made from guide covers soaps in both bar and liquid or for showers than solid soap bars, recycled plastic, a thin paper wrapper or form, including handwashes and hand often driven by a fear of other people’s no wrapper for soap bars is better. sanitisers, plus shower gels and body bacteria lurking on bar soap. Companies Petroleum: Many shower gels and washes. have encouraged the notion that using body washes are made of petroleum- As the score tables overleaf show, liquid soap was more hygienic with clever derived synthetic detergents and need there are many companies offering marketing as there is a higher profit emulsifying agents and stabilisers alternatives which are organic, made margin from the more expensive product. to maintain their consistency. without the use of animal ingredients, or In terms of COVID-19, both liquid Damage to aquatic life: What you use palm oil free. soap and bar soap have been shown to on your body ends up in the water system. This guide also tells you where to get be equally as efficient in washing our Liquid detergents may contain harmful the Best Buys online and which is the best hands. Although bacteria may stay on substances that can bioaccumulate in brand you can find in your pharmacy or a bar of soap between washing, studies living organisms. supermarket. have consistently shown that this does On the score table, all brands make There are hundreds of other small not contaminate the next user. But most both bar soap and liquid soap (handwash) companies making soap which we could studies on bar soap are based on bacteria unless otherwise indicated by the use of not cover here. Look out for your local not viruses. ‘bar’ or ‘liquid’ next to the brand name. supplier. The NHS, World Health Organisation The following brands of bar soap are and Centres for Disease Control do not in either plastic-free packaging or no stipulate whether to use a bar or liquid packaging: Caurnie, Friendly Soap, Faith The market soap. in Nature, ALTER/NATIVE by Suma, A precaution with bar soap is to keep it Honesty, LUSH, Little Soap Company and The UK’s soap, bath and shower gel dry and not let it lie in a puddle of germ- Eco Warrior, Odylique, Pure Nuff Stuff, market is dominated by just three major loving sludge. and Weleda. brands – Carex, Dove, and Radox.Radox If you would prefer a liquid hand soap

HAND SANITISERS, GELS & RUBS

Sales of hand sanitiser soared by 255% in February, Of the brands on the table, Baylis, Boots, Carex, which was good news for the handful of manufacturers, Cuticura and Dettol all make hand sanitisers. including Carex and Cuticura which dominate the market. Public Health England is not recommending people Soap and water is best but if you don’t have access make their own hand gels at home. to soap and water, the next best thing is alcohol-based hand sanitisers or hand rubs. The NHS and the Centers Is antibacterial soap any use? for Disease Control say if soap and water are not readily The clue is in the name. available, use a hand sanitiser that contains at least 60% Antibacterial soap is regular soap alcohol. (detergent) with some additional It is more expensive than soap and it is does not kill ingredients which are targeted at as many kinds of bacteria and viruses as soap does. killing bacteria. But for removing Furthermore, Dr Jenna Macciochi, an immunologist based viruses, the detergent/soap element at Sussex University, said that sanitisers may “damage is actually the most effective part. So plain soap will do. your natural microbiome” with persistent use. It’s also Plus, overuse of antibacterial soaps can potentially add possible that other microbes like bacteria may start to to the problem of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, so it’s become resistant. best avoided anyway.

ethicalconsumer.org 11 USING THE TABLES Environment Animals People Politics +ve USING THE TABLES Ethiscore: the higher the score, the Positive ratings (+ve): better the company. Scored out of 14. Plus up to 1 extra point for Company Company Ethos: Ethos and up to 5 extra points for = full mark Product Sustainability. e E = half mark Green (good) = 12+ Product Sustainability: Amber (average) = 11.5–5 Various positive marks available Red (poor) = 4.5–0 depending on sector. H = worst rating h = middle rating = best rating/no criticisms found Best Buys are highlighted in blue

Lucy Bee bar [F,O,Vg] 18 e 3 Lucy Bee Ltd Odylique bar [O,Vg] 16 h e 1.5 Essential Care (Organics) Ltd Bio D [Vg] 15.5 h e 1 Bio D Company Friendly Soap bar [Vg] 15.5 h e 1 Friendly Soap Ltd Little Soap Company [O,Vg] 15.5 H e 1.5 Little Soap Company Ltd Bentley Organic [O,Vg] 15 h h h h e 2 Bentley Organic Ltd Conscious Skincare liquid [Vg] 15 h e 0.5 Conscious Skincare Ltd Eco Warrior bar [Vg] 15 H e 1 Little Soap Company Ltd Green People liquid [Vg,O] 15 h h h E 2 Desford Holdings Neal’s Yard [O,Vg] 15 h h h e 1.5 Neal’s Yard (Natural Remedies) ALTER/NATIVE [Vg] 14.5 H h e 1 Triangle Wholefoods t/a Suma Caurnie [Vg] 14.5 h h e 0.5 Caurnie Soap Co Ecoleaf liquid [Vg] 14.5 H h e 1 Triangle Wholefoods t/a Suma Honesty liquid [Vg] 14.5 h H e 1 Honesty Cosmetics Organii [O,Vg] 14.5 H h 2 Earth Aid Group

Faith in Nature [Vg] 14 h h H e 1 Faith in Nature Ltd Honesty bar [Vg] 14 h H e 0.5 Honesty Cosmetics Pure Nuff Stuff [Vg] 14 h h E 0.5 Pure Nuff Stuff Ltd Traidcraft Clean & Fair bar [F] 13.5 H h h h e 1 Traidcraft plc Weleda bar [Vg] 13.5 h h h E 0.5 Weleda AG Lush bar [Vg] 13 H h h h E 1 Lush Cosmetics Ltd Astonish liquid [Vg] 12.5 H H h H e 1 Astonish Holdings Lavera liquid [O,Vg] 12.5 H H h H 2 Laverana GmbH

ECOS liquid [Vg] 12 H h H H e 0.5 Venus Laboratories Urtekram [O,Vg] 12 H h H H 1.5 Midsona Baylis & Harding [Vg] 10.5 H h H h H 0.5 Baylis & HArding plc Cuticura bar [Vg] 8.5 HHHH H H 0.5 JZ International L’Occitane 8.5 h h H H h H H CIME S.C.A Nivea 8.5 H h H H h h H Beiersdorf AG Carex, Bayley’s of Bond liquid 8 h h h H H h H H PZ Cussons PLC Cuticura hand gel 8 HHHH H H JZ International Imperial Leather 8 h h h H H h H H PZ Cussons PLC Molton Brown 8 h H h H h H h H Kao Group

Body Shop, Avon 7.5 h H h H h h h h H H E Natura Cosmeticos S/A Avalon Organics liquid [O,Vg] 6.5 H h H HH hHh h hH 1 Hain Celestial Group Inc Bulldog bar [Vg] 6.5 h H H H H H H h H 0.5 Edgewell Personal Care JASÖN liquid [Vg] 6 H h H HH hHh h hH 0.5 Hain Celestial Group Inc Wright’s, Cidal bars 5 H H HhHhHHh h H Fung Group Dettol 4.5 h H h H H H H h H HH Reckitt Benckiser Sante [O,Vg] 4.5 H H HhhHHHh hhHH 1 L’Oréal Johnson’s bar 4 H HhHH HhhH h HH Johnson & Johnson Camay bar 3.5 h HHHH HHHh h H H Procter & Gamble Company Palmolive, Sanex, Tom’s of Maine 3.5 HhHHHHHHH h hH Colgate-Palmolive Co Simple bar soap 2.5 H HhHHHHHHh h HH Unilever/Fung Group Dove, Pear’s 1.5 h HHHHHHHHhh hhHH Unilever Radox, Simple liquids 1.5 h HHHHHHHHhh hhHH Unilever Superdrug 1.5 HHHHHHHHHhH h hH CK Hutchinson Holdings Ltd Boots liquid, Soap & Glory bar 1 H HHhHHHHHHH h HH Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc

12 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 SHOPPING GUIDE

m Soap nsu er o .o c r l g

or shower gel, then go for these ethical date after which none of their products i

BEST t companies that offer refills: ALTER/ or ingredients will have been tested on e Y NATIVE by Suma, Bio-D, and Faith in animals), and are not selling to markets BUYS BE BU Nature. where animal testing of products is S T required by law. A clear rating in the Animal Testing column indicates this. We would recommend bars of soap Animal ingredients The following over liquid handwash because of their companies were environmental benefit. A common ingredient in bars of soap is certified by the Lucy Bee, Odylique, Friendly Soap, sodium tallowate, made from rendered Leaping Bunny Bio D, Caurnie, and ALTER/NATIVE animal fat. Stearic acid and glycerin in standard, the gold do best on the issues key issues in this soap may also be animal derived, whilst standard for being market e.g. vegan, organic, palm oil, honey, lanolin and milk can be added. a cruelty-free microplastics, toxic chemicals, and Brands which are suitable for vegans company: Alba animal testing. have been marked on the table with [Vg]. Botanica, Astonish, Vegan soaps and shower gels are now Avalon Organics, Bio-D, Conscious Lucy Bee offered by Alba Botanica, ALTER/NATIVE Skincare, Lucy Bee, Faith in Nature, and Ecoleaf by Suma, Astonish, Avalon Friendly Soap, Jason, Neal’s Yard, 18 Organics, Badger, Baylis and Harding, Honesty, Little Soap, Natura (Body Shop), Bentley Organics, Bio-D, Bulldog, Caurnie and PHB Ethical Beauty. Soap, Conscious Skincare, Cuticura bar Odylique soap, Earth Friendly Baby, ECOS, Faith in Nature, Friendly Soap, Honesty, Jason, Plastics in toiletries 16 Little Soap Company, Lucy Bee, Lush, Pure Nuff Stuff, Lavera, Odylique, Organii, More than 500 known microbeads or Pacifica, Green People, Weleda, Urtekram, microplastic ingredients can be found in Yaoh, Neal’s Yard, and PHB Ethical Beauty. personal care products. These are tiny Even the mainstream companies are plastic particles that are added for their now making vegan shower gel: Original exfoliating properties, but sometimes Source (PZ Cussons), Love Beauty and purely for aesthetic purposes only. A 15.5 Planet (Unilever). recent report by CodeCheck found that If you are vegan you may also wish to non-biodegradable liquid plastics were These are followed by Bentley buy soap from a totally vegan company: also prevalent across a wide range of Organic and Neal’s Yard soap bars. Bio-D, Caurnie, Friendly Soap, Honesty, cosmetic products. See page 36 for Little Soap Company, Lucy Bee, Pacifica, what’s wrong with microplastics and PHB Ethical Beauty, Yaoh, and Faith in liquid plastics. Nature. In 2018, the UK government banned RECOMMENDED the use of microbeads in ‘rinse-off’ products such as shower gels. However, For bar soaps, we would also Animal testing microbeads were not banned in products recommend Little Soap Company and classified as ‘leave on’ (lotions, sun cream Eco Warrior. Although the testing of cosmetics on and make-up), nor were liquid plastics. For liquid handwash, we recommend animals has been banned in the EU, this The following brands were made by ALTER/NATIVE, Ecoleaf, Faith in is not the case everywhere else in the companies that did not use microplastics Nature or Bio D which are refillable. world. But the REACH legislation has or liquid plastics in any of their products: At the moment, you will be able to get complicated the issue. See the article on Bio D, cut.le.crap, Friendly Soap, Hain these in a wholefood or health food page 32 for more on this. Celestial (Jason, Avalon, Alba Botanica), shop or from the companies’ online Ethical Consumer rates all companies Honesty , Lavera, Little Soap Company, shops. When bricks and mortar shops selling cosmetics on their animal testing Lucy Bee, Neal’s Yard, Organii, Pure are open again, Lush is the most widely policy. Companies will score a best Nuff Stuff, ALTER/NATIVE by Suma, and available because of its high-street rating if they have a policy not to test Weleda. shops. on animals, have a fixed cut-off date (a Of the brands you might only be able to find in supermarkets, food shops [O] = organic [Vg] = vegan [F] = Fairtrade All the research behind these ratings is on and pharmacies, Baylis & Harding www.ethicalconsumer.org Definitions of all the categories are at does relatively well. www.ethicalconsumer.org/our-ethical-ratings.

Best Buys are decided by the editorial team based on the research we have m nsu er o .o undertaken, the scoring system and the unique insight into the issues that our c r l g editorial team has. 9 times out of 10 this will be the brand (or brands) that are top BRANDS TO AVOID a

i of the table but sometimes an ethical company which is truly innovative scores

t e less well on our rigid scoring system and we use the Best Buy and Recommended Y Avoid Boots and Superdrug who score BE U section to acknowledge this. A company cannot be a Best Buy if it scores worst for S T B worst in most of our categories. Supply Chain Management.

ethicalconsumer.org 13 USING THE TABLES Environment Animals People Politics +ve USING THE TABLES Ethiscore: the higher the score, the Positive ratings (+ve): better the company. Scored out of 14. Plus up to 1 extra point for Company Company Ethos: Ethos and up to 5 extra points for = full mark Product Sustainability. e E = half mark Green (good) = 12+ Product Sustainability: Amber (average) = 11.5–5 Various positive marks available Red (poor) = 4.5–0 depending on sector. H = worst rating h = middle rating = best rating/no criticisms found Best Buys are highlighted in blue

Odylique [O,Vg] 16 h e 1.5 Essential Care (Organics) Ltd Conscious Skincare [O,Vg] 15.5 h e 1 Conscious Skincare Ltd Neal’s Yard [O,Vg,F] 15.5 h h h e 2 Neal’s Yard (Natural Remedies) Little Soap Company [O,Vg] 15.5 H e 1.5 Little Soap Company Ltd PHB Ethical Beauty [Vg] 15.5 h e 1 PHB Ethical Beauty Ltd Bentley Organic [O,Vg] 15 h h h h e 2 Bentley Organic Ltd Green People [O,Vg] 15 h h h E 2 Desford Holdings ALTER/NATIVE [Vg] 14.5 H h e 1 Triangle Wholefoods t/a Suma Caurnie [Vg] 14.5 h h e 0.5 Caurnie Soap Co cut.le.crap [O] 14.5 0.5 Cut Le Crap

Honesty [Vg] 14.5 h H e 1 Honesty Cosmetics Faith in Nature [Vg] 14 h h H e 1 Faith in Nature Ltd Organii [O,Vg] 14 H h 1.5 Earth Aid Group

Pure Nuff Stuff [Vg] 14 h h E 0.5 Pure Nuff Stuff Ltd Weleda [Vg] 13.5 h h h E 0.5 Weleda AG Lush [Vg] 13 H h h h E 1 Lush Cosmetics Ltd Lavera [O,Vg] 12.5 H H h H 2 Laverana GmbH

Yaoh [Vg] 12.5 H h H H e 1 Yaoh Ltd Urtekram [O,Vg] 12 H h H H 1.5 Midsona Lavera [O] 11.5 H H h H 1 Laverana GmbH Earth Friendly Baby [Vg, O] 11 H h H H h H 2 Pigeon Corporation

Pacifica [Vg] 11 H H H h H h e 1 Pacifica Beauty LLC Baylis and Harding [Vg] 10.5 H h H h H 0.5 Baylis & Harding plc Original Source [Vg] 9 h h h H H h H H 1 PZ Cussons PLC L’Occitane 8.5 h h H H h H H CIME S.C.A Nivea 8.5 H h H H h h H Beiersdorf AG Carex, Imperial Leather 8 h h h H H h H H PZ Cussons PLC Sanctuary Spa 8 h h h H H h H H PZ Cussons PLC Molton Brown 8 h H h H h H h H Kao Group

Body Shop, Avon 7.5 h H h H h h h h H H E Natura Cosmeticos S/A Clarins 7 H H H H h H h H Clarins Avalon Organics [O,Vg] 6.5 H h H HH hHh h hH 1 Hain Celestial Group Inc Bulldog [Vg] 6.5 h H H H H H H h H 0.5 Edgewell Personal Care Neutromed, Nature Box 6.5 h H h h H H H HH Henkel AG & Co. KGaA JASÖN, Alba Botanica [Vg] 6 H h H HH hHh h hH 0.5 Hain Celestial Group Inc Elizabeth Arden 5.5 H H H H h H H H H MacAndrews & Forbes Origins, Tom Ford 5.5 h H h h H h h H HHH Estée Lauder Companies Inc Sante [O,Vg] 4.5 H H HhhHHHh hhHH 1 L’Oréal Aveeno, Johnson’s 4 H HhHH HhhH h HH Johnson & Johnson Dr Organic 3.5 HHH HHhHh H h HH KKR & Co Olay, Old Spice 3.5 h HHHH HHHh h HH Procter & Gamble Company Palmolive, Sanex, Tom’s of Maine 3.5 HhHHHHHHH h hH Colgate-Palmolive Co Love Beauty and Planet [Vg] 2 h HHHHHHHHhh hhHH 0.5 Unilever Dove, Lynx, Pear’s, Radox 1.5 h HHHHHHHHhh hhHH Unilever Simple, Badedas 1.5 h HHHHHHHHhh hhHH Unilever Superdrug 1.5 HHHHHHHHHhH h hH CK Hutchinson Holdings Ltd Boots, Soap & Glory 1 H HHhHHHHHHH h HH Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc

14 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 SHOPPING GUIDE

Shower gel ume ns r o .o c r l g

Toxic chemicals butylparaben on an ingredients list. i

h Triclosan may be used in liquid soaps BEST t

e Y We have rated all the brands for their whilst you might see triclocarban as an BUYS BE U toxic chemicals policies on three key ingredient in soap bars. For example, S T B chemicals. Those companies which Dettol soap bars contain triclocarban. received a best rating had a policy Phthalates may be used in synthetic We would recommend bars of soap which has banned the use of parabens, fragrances. over liquid shower gels and body phthalates and triclosan. We talk However, as you can see from the washes. See page 13. more about these chemicals in our table below, the majority of the brands If you do want to buy a liquid feature Toxic Beauty on page 35. are owned by companies that have either product, Odylique, ALTER/NATIVE Parabens are often an ingredient committed to not using any of the three (refillable), andCaurnie do best on the of liquid soaps and are used as toxics or have at least committed to key issues in this market e.g. vegan, a preservative. You might see banning one or two of them (a middle organic, palm oil, microplastics, toxic methylparaben, propylparaben, and rating). chemicals, and animal testing.

Best rating for toxics Odylique Attitude, Bentley Organics, Caurnie Soap, ALTER/NATIVE and Ecoleaf, Conscious Skincare, cut.le.crap, Lucy Bee, Bio D, Friendly Soap, Honesty, Little Soap 16 Company, Pure Nuff Stuff, Lavera, Hain Celestial, Odylique, Organii, PHB Ethical Beauty, Green People, Weleda, Colgate-Palmolive, Neal’s Yard, Traidcraft, Faith in Nature. Alter/ Native Middle rating for toxics Baylis and Harding, PZ Cussons, Earth Friendly Baby, Lush, Procter & Gamble, 14.5 Avon, Body Shop, Urtekram, Unilever, Elizabeth Arden, Johnson & Johnson, Sante, Nivea, Yaoh Caurnie Worst rating for toxics Astonish, Bulldog, Cuticura, Molton Brown, Fung Group, Estée Lauder, Clarins, 14.5 Henkel AG, L’Occitane International, KKR, Pacifica, Reckitt Benckiser (Dettol), Walgreens Boots Alliance, Superdrug. These are followed by Conscious Skincare, Neal’s Yard, Cut le crap, Bentley Organic, Green People and Palm oil PHB Ethical Beauty.

Palm oil and palm oil derivatives have become an important component in many soap products. In particular, it is used RECOMMENDED because it is a fat that is hard at room temperature. Substitutes include cocoa butter and coconut oil. We would also recommend Honesty, Our Palm Oil column on the score table shows which companies receive our best, Little Soap Company and Faith in middle and worst ratings for their palm oil policies and practices. Nature shower gel. Faith in Nature is Palm-oil free brands: Caurnie Soap, Conscious Skincare, Friendly Soap, Lucy Bee, refillable. Pure Nuff Stuff. You will be able to get these in a Companies that source their palm oil more sustainably and get a best Ethical wholefood or health food shop or from Consumer rating for their palm oil sourcing include: cut.le.crap, PHB Ethical Beauty, the company’s online shop. When Triangle Wholefoods Collective Ltd. (ALTER/NATIVE and Ecoleaf), Little Soap Company, bricks and mortar shops are open Lush, Nivea, Weleda, Odylique, and Badger. Traidcraft used Fairtrade palm oil in its again, Lush is the most widely available products. because of its high street shops. Of the brands you might only be able [O] = organic [Vg] = vegan [F] = Fairtrade All the research behind these ratings is on to find in supermarkets, food shops and www.ethicalconsumer.org Definitions of all the categories are at pharmacies, Baylis & Harding does www.ethicalconsumer.org/our-ethical-ratings. relatively well.

m Best Buys are decided by the editorial team based on the research we have nsu er o .o undertaken, the scoring system and the unique insight into the issues that our c r l g editorial team has. 9 times out of 10 this will be the brand (or brands) that are BRANDS TO AVOID a

i top of the table but sometimes an ethical company which is truly innovative h t

e Y scores less well on our rigid scoring system and we use the Best Buy and Avoid Boots and Superdrug who score BE U S T B Recommended section to acknowledge this. A company cannot be a Best Buy if it worst in most of our categories. scores worst for Supply Chain Management.

ethicalconsumer.org 15 SHOPPING GUIDE Soap and shower gel Organic suds Companies behind Brands which are organic have been marked on the table on pages 12 and 14 the brands with [O]. The following brands made organic PZ Cussons are a major toiletries brand products only: but also have a partnership with Chinese l Avalon Organics white goods company Haier to make l Bentley Organics domestic appliances in Nigeria where l Lucy Bee they also have a palm oil plantation and l Odylique refinery joint venture with the notorious The following brands also had some Indonesian palm oil trader Wilmar. organic products: Lavera, cut.le.crap, A Greenpeace report criticised PZ Conscious Skincare, Earth Friendly Baby, Cussons in 2018 for not giving any details Green People, Little Soap Company, Neal’s about its palm oil supply chain despite Yard, Organii, Sante, and Urtekram. having “no deforestation, no peat, no See the article on page 33 for more exploitation” (NDPE) policies. It targetted about organic certifications. the Carex brand and told the company to Luckily there are lots of soap companies “come clean”. that don’t use any toxic chemicals. Since the report, PZ Cussons has nearly achieved tracing its palm oil supplies back to the mill and only sourcing from Make your own soap suppliers with NDPE standards. But it does not use any RSPO-certified palm oil There are loads of recipes and instructions on the products and stated it wouldn’t until 2023. web on how to do this. Lucy Bee is a small UK company Soap making is essentially a chemical reaction, with a wide range of organic coconut known as saponification, between a lye, which is products, from oil to flour to sugar, but often sodium hydroxide (a salt), and oils like coconut also cocoa, spices, bath salts and skincare. or olive. Whilst lye is caustic, once the soap is made Every ingredient that can be fair trade and cured, there is no lye left in the finished bar. is. Its skincare products and soaps are Making your own means you know exactly what is certified organic and are free from palm going into it and it is packaging free. Plus, it will cost ingredients. See our interview with Lucy less. Bee, which has the Ethical Consumer Best Permaculture News has a simple coconut oil Buy label www.ethicalconsumer.org/food- recipe on its website – www.permaculturenews. drink/interview-lucy-bee org/2016/05/13/how-to-make-soap-sustainably Cut.le.crap is a small UK company with a range of handmade bodycare products. It is on a mission to remove all plastic in packaging, using sugarcane waste where necessary. It has chosen not to use Amazon for any services and is aiming to use Fair for Life certified raw materials in all products by August 2020. See our interview with cut.le.crap, which has the Ethical Consumer Best Buy label www.ethicalconsumer.org/health-beauty/ best-buy-q-cut-le-crap Reckitt Benckiser makes Dettol soap and E45 Lotion. It also makes over the counter health remedies like Nurofen, Disprin, Strepsils and Gaviscon, as well as household products like Vanish and the air freshener Air Wick. In July 2019, Reckitt Benckiser was fined $1.4 billion over sales of Suboxone Film, an opioid-based drug. The US justice department claimed that it had fraudulently said that Suboxone Film was safer than similar drugs when it was not, and that it was referring patients to doctors it knew to be carelessly prescribing opioids. The payout was the

16 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 logo, presumably because of the intended purpose of the product. Lush Cosmetics, which has over 900 Lush-branded stores worldwide, is well known for its non-animal testing stance as well as for a wide range of other radical political interventions. While many companies in this sector claim that they do not test on animals, Lush describes itself as “fighting animal testing”. It does this by seeking to operate a company-level boycott of suppliers using animal testing anywhere in the business. Its non-animal testing policy states that it will “only buy raw materials from companies that are not involved in the use of, or commission the use of, animals for testing and have no plans to do so in the future.” Since 2013, Lush has worked with Ethical Consumer, as a third party, to audit its Reckitt has been sanctioned on a Traidcraft was founded in 1979 and supply chains in order to try to ensure that number of other occasions for making has been at the heart of the fair trade this policy is upheld. misleading claims about its products. In movement in the UK for over 40 years. Lush also created a global prize in 2012 to 2016, it was fined $6 million in Australia The last few years have been tough for support initiatives to end or replace animal for ‘misleading conduct’ over selling Traidcraft, with it coming close to collapse testing. The £250,000 prize fund, which has Nurofen Specific Pain products that in 2018. But a surge of support combined gone to a range of winners from scientists claimed to be targeted at a type or area with a restructuring of the business to campaigners, is the largest prize fund in of pain, although they were all really just allowed it to continue working towards its the world of non-animal testing. This project Ibuprofen. vision: “A world without poverty, where all is also run in partnership with Ethical trade is fair.” Consumer. Astonish Holdings is a private We have been working with Lush for limited company which produces a some years on a number of projects range of soaps and cleaning products including the Lush Prize and Spring Prize. all manufactured on its site in the exotic We work with the company because it is an land of West Yorkshire, UK. The company ethical company that tries hard to do the states that all its products are approved right thing where possible. This relationship by the Vegan Society and are Leaping doesn’t impact our ratings and we try to Bunny accredited. However, the company remain a critical friend to Lush, helping it did sell leather cleaner which, while not improve the way it operates whenever we containing animal products itself, did can. Our independent ratings, based in a not appear to carry the Vegan Society formal methodology, help to do this.

The ‘fighting hare’ awards given to the winners of Lush’s £350,000 prize fund which rewards those working towards a world free from animal testing.

The company does moderately poorly across our ratings. None of its palm oil is certified by the RSPO, it has reams of subsidiaries in tax havens, and it gets our worst rating for animal testing and for toxic chemicals. Bio-D is an independent, family-owned company founded in 1989 that produces hypoallergenic soaps and detergents. All its products, which are manufactured at a site in the UK’s 2017 City of Culture, Hull, are approved by the Vegan Society and have Leaping Bunny accreditation. The company has been working to create its packaging from recycled materials, with over 65% of its range now made from 100% post-consumer recycled bottles.

ethicalconsumer.org 17 SHOPPING GUIDE Shampoo A shampoo lockdown challenge ANNA CLAYTON reviews the policies and practices of 45 cosmetic companies, highlighting ways to reduce your hair’s impact on the planet during the lockdown and beyond.

here is nothing quite like a Clare Carlile of Ethical Consumer This guide to shampoo highlights pandemic to put things into summarises the situation well: “As the brands to avoid and support if we perspective. humans exploit new areas of the natural are to reduce our hair’s impact on the Along with soap, paracetamol, world, we disturb the viruses they contain planet. Stories of going ‘no poo’ – without Ttoilet paper and food, shampoo still allowing them to transmit to human shampoo – are also shared on page remains on many peoples’ lockdown populations. In this way, deforestation 23. These offer the perfect shampoo shopping lists. Regular hair washing is and habitat destruction enable pandemics lockdown challenge. advised as a preventative measure to like the one we currently face”. avoid spreading COVID-19 (especially And yes, the company behind the after visiting a space where there is a risk shampoo brand you use may be of contamination). But what should we be culpable. washing our hair with? Many of those involved in Spending more hours at home offers the cosmetics industry are an invaluable opportunity to reflect on complicit in industrial this question. farming, expanding palm As discussed in Ethical Consumer’s plantations and tax series of articles about COVID-19, this avoidance. crisis is very much human-made. It has arguably emerged from years of exploitation driven by corporate greed, resulting in the declining health of the ecosystems (and the public health systems) we rely on.

A fully referenced version of this Product Guide is on our website © Andrianocz | Dreamstime.com

18 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 Palm oil Vegan products are now offered by Suma, Baylis and Palm oil and its derivatives are found Harding, Bentley Organics, in a vast number of cosmetics products Caurnie Soap, Conscious including shampoo. How a company Skincare, Daniel Field, Earth sources and traces its palm oil products Friendly Baby, Friendly will affect whether it is linked with the Soap, Honesty, Little Soap clearing of rainforests and peatlands, Company, Lush, Noughty, © Toxitz | Dreamstime.com © Toxitz and the degree to which its products Pure Nuff Stuff, Yaoh, Lavera, negatively affect local communities, Avalon, Odylique, Badger, biodiversity and climate change. Green People, Weleda, Urtekram, Our palm oil column (see table on page Inecto, PHB Ethical Beauty, x) shows which companies receive our Attitude, Sante, Love Beauty and best, middle and worst ratings for their Planet. Neal's Yard, and Faith in Nature, palm oil policies and practices. You may also wish to buy from a totally LUSH solid shampoo Shampoo brands that are palm oil- vegan company. Vegan shampoo brands bar – no packaging. free include: Caurnie Soap, Conscious made by vegan companies include: Skincare, Friendly Soap, Honesty and Caurnie, Daniel Field, Friendly Soap, identified in Mintel’s 2019 Women’s Pure Nuff Stuff. Honesty, Little Soap Company, Yaoh, and Haircare market report: there was an Companies that source their palm Faith in Nature. increase in sulphate-free and paraben- oil more sustainably and get a best free claims on beauty products in 2018. Ethical Consumer rating for their palm Companies that receive our best mark oil sourcing include: Odylique, Triangle Controversial for their toxics policies avoid all three Wholefoods Collective Ltd. (ALTER/ toxins. Ones that score a middle have a NATIVE), Little Soap Company, Lush, ingredients policy to avoid one or two of the toxins, Weleda, A.Vogel, L’Oréal (however Nestlé Toxic chemicals and companies that score a worst use all gets a worst rating), PHB Ethical Beauty, The often long and complex ingredients three or have no policy. and Badger. lists of bodycare products – including shampoo – contain a number of ingredients of concern. Parabens, Best rating for toxic chemicals Animal products phthalates and triclosan have been selected by Ethical Consumer as Attitude, Bentley Organics, Caurnie Although a number of animal derivatives important indicators for our own toxics Soap, ALTER/NATIVE (Triangle are found in cosmetic products rating. Wholefoods Collective Ltd. (t/a Suma (including honey, beeswax, propolis, Since last writing about shampoo, Wholefoods), Conscious Skincare, milk and lanolin), there are now a wide in February 2017, a number of Friendly Soap, Honesty, Little Soap range of vegan alternatives within companies have chosen to remove all Company, L’Occitane, Pure Nuff Stuff, the shampoo market – as highlighted three ingredients from their cosmetics Laverana, Hain Celestial, Essential by a [Vg] after the brand name in the products, including Suma, Honesty and Care (Organics), Badger, Green People, table. In fact, the number of shampoo Colgate-Palmolive. Weleda, A. Vogel, Colgate-Palmolive, products marketed as vegan appears Others have started to remove some Neal's Yard, PHB Beauty and Faith in to have increased since we last wrote of them, including Body Shop, L’Oréal, Nature. about shampoo in 2017, suggesting an Natura Cosmeticos, Unilever, and Procter increased demand for vegan products. and Gamble. This shift reflects a trend Middle rating for toxic chemicals

Baylis and Harding, Beiersdorf, PZ Cussons, Davines, Pigeon Corp (Earth TAX AVOIDANCE Friendly Baby), Lush, KMI Brands (Noughty), Rolland SRL (O Way), Procter At a time when the NHS and other public service are under huge strain, it is & Gamble, Yaoh, Natura Cosmeticos, ethically absurd to think that corporates can still avoid paying a fair rate of Body Shop, Midsona, Unilever, Johnson tax. Ethical Consumer calls on the UK Government to urgently tackle systemic & Johnson, and L’Oréal. tax avoidance and ban government contracts with companies engaged in tax avoidance. Worst rating for toxic For those seeking shampoo, we advise boycotting companies that receive chemicals Ethical Consumer’s worst rating for the likely use of tax avoidance practices. These include: Procter and Gamble, Hain Celestial, Natura Cosmeticos, Clarins, Alpecin (owned by Dr Kurt Wolff Walgreen Boots Alliance, Johnson and Johnson, Nestlé, L’Oréal, Church and Gmbh), Daniel Field, Kao Group, Fung Dwight, JZ International, the Fung Group, Kao Group, Estée Lauder, Colgate- Group, Estée Lauder, Clarins, Henkel Palmolive, L'Occitane International, JAB Cosmetics, KKR, CK Hutchison and AG, Church & Dwight, JAB Cosmetics, Unilever. JZ International, KKR, L’Occitane Companies that score a middle Ethical Consumer rating for the likely use of tax International, Walgreens Boots Alliance, avoidance strategies include PZ Cussons and Henkel AG. and Superdrug.

ethicalconsumer.org 19 USING THE TABLES Environment Animals People Politics +ve USING THE TABLES Ethiscore: the higher the score, the Positive ratings (+ve): better the company. Scored out of 14. Company Ethos: Plus up to 1 extra point for Company = full mark Ethos and up to 5 extra points for e Product Sustainability. E = half mark Green (good) = 12+ Product Sustainability: Amber (average) = 11.5–5 Various positive marks available Red (poor) = 4.5–0 depending on sector. H = worst rating h = middle rating = best rating/no criticisms found Best Buys are highlighted in blue

BRAND 14 + 6 extras) (out of Ethiscore Reporting Environmental Change Climate & Toxics Pollution Habitats & Resources Oil Palm Animal Testing Farming Factory Animal Rights Human Rights Rights Workers’ Chain Management Supply Marketing Irresponsible Arms & Military Supply Technologies Controversial Call Boycott Activity Political Finance Anti-Social Ethos Company Sustainability Product COMPANY GROUP Odylique [O, Vg] 16 h e 1.5 Essential Care (Organics) Ltd Conscious Skincare [O, Vg] 15.5 h e 1 Conscious Skincare Ltd Friendly Soap [Vg] bar 15.5 h e 1 Friendly Soap Ltd Little Soap Company [O, Vg] bar 15.5 H e 1.5 Little Soap Company Ltd PHB Ethical Beauty [Vg] 15.5 h e 1 PHB Ethical Beauty Ltd Badger [O, Vg] bar 15 h h E 1.5 WS Badger Co Inc Bentley Organic [O, Vg] 15 h h h h e 2 Bentley Organic Ltd Conscious Skincare [Vg] 15 h e 0.5 Conscious Skincare Ltd Eco Warrior [Vg] bar 15 H e 1 Little Soap Company Ltd Green People [Vg, O] 15 h h h E 2 Desford Holdings Neal’s Yard [O, Vg] 15 h h h e 1.5 Neal’s Yard (Natural Remedies) ALTER/NATIVE [Vg] bar 14.5 H h e 1 Triangle Wholefoods Collective Caurnie [Vg] bar 14.5 h h e 0.5 Caurnie Soap Co Honesty [Vg] 14.5 h H e 1 Honesty Cosmetics Neal’s Yard [O] 14.5 h h h e 1 Neal’s Yard (Natural Remedies) Faith in Nature [Vg] bar 14 h h H e 1 Faith in Nature Ltd Pure Nuff Stuff [Vg] bar 14 h h E 0.5 Pure Nuff Stuff Ltd Neal’s Yard 13.5 h h h e Neal’s Yard (Natural Remedies) Weleda [Vg] 13.5 h h h E 0.5 Weleda AG Lush [Vg] bar 13 H h h h E 1 Lush Cosmetics Ltd Attitude [Vg] 12.5 h H h H e 0.5 9055-7588 Québec Inc Lavera [O, Vg] 12.5 H H h H 2 Laverana GmbH Yaoh [Vg] 12.5 H h H H e 1 Yaoh Ltd Urtekram [O, Vg] 12 H h H H 1.5 Midsona A Vogel Neem 11.5 H h h H E A. Vogel AG Daniel Field [Vg] 11.5 HHH H e 0.5 Daniel Field Direct Ltd Lavera [O] 11.5 H H h H 1 Laverana GmbH Davines 11 H h H H E Davines SPA Earth Friendly Baby [Vg, O] 11 H h H H h H 2 Pigeon Corporation Noughty [Vg] 11 h H h H H 1 Knowledge and Merchandising Baylis and Harding [Vg] 10.5 H h H h H 0.5 Baylis & Harding plc O Way 9.5 H h H H H ROLLAND SRL Alpecin 9 HHHH H Dr. Wolff Group Inecto [Vg] 8.5 HHHH H H 0.5 JZ International L’Occitane 8.5 h h H H h H H CIME S.C.A Nivea 8.5 H h H H h h H Beiersdorf AG Charles Worthington 8 h h h H H h H H PZ Cussons PLC John Frieda, Molton Brown 8 h H h H h H h H Kao Group Body Shop, Avon 7.5 h HhHh hhh h HH e Natura Cosmeticos S/A Batiste dry shampoo 7 h H H h H H h h H Church & Dwight Co Inc Clarins 7 H H H H h H h H Clarins Avalon Organics [O, Vg] 6.5 H h H HH hHh h hH 1 Hain Celestial Group Inc Schwarzkopf, Gliss, Nature Box 6.5 h H h h H H H HH Henkel AG & Co. KGaA JASÖN, Alba Botanica 5.5 H h H HH hHh h hH Hain Celestial Group Inc Aveda, Bumble and Bumble 5.5 h H h h H h h H HHH Estée Lauder Companies Inc Vosene 5 H H HhHhHHh h H Fung Group Wella 4.5 h H h H H h h H h H HH JAB Cosmetics B.V. Sante [O, Vg] 4.5 H H HhhHHHh hhHH 1 L’Oréal/Nestle Neutrogena, Johnson’s, Aveeno 4 H HhHH HhhH h HH Johnson & Johnson L’Oréal, Garnier 4 h H HhhHHHh hhHH L’Oréal/Nestle Dr Organic 3.5 HHH HHhHh H h HH KKR & Co Head & Shoulders, Pantene 3.5 h HHHH HHHh h HH Procter & Gamble Company Palmolive Naturals 3.5 HhHHHHHHH h hH Colgate-Palmolive Co Love Beauty and Planet [Vg] 2 h HHHHHHHHhh hhHH 0.5 Unilever TRESemmé, Dove, Alberto, VO5 1.5 h HHHHHHHHhh hhHH Unilever Superdrug 1.5 HHHHHHHHHhH h hH CK Hutchinson Holdings Ltd Boots, Soap & Glory 1 H HHhHHHHHHH h HH Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc

20 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 SHOPPING GUIDE

Shampoo sume n r o .o c r l g

Irritant foaming agents on’. All companies’ policies regarding i

h You may also want to avoid the foaming microplastics were therefore assessed by BEST t

e Y agents sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS) and Ethical Consumer. See page 36 for more BUYS BE U its milder form sodium laureth sulphate information about our rating and the S T B (SLES), which are known irritants and ethical issues with microplastics. are often used in shampoos. Shampoo companies that are Our Best Buys for shampoo are both However, the Skin Deep website gives considered to have positive microplastics vegan [Vg] and organic [O]. These SLS and SLES hazard ratings of 1-2 policies (that exclude the use of are Conscious Skincare, Odylique, (low hazard) and 1-3 (moderate hazard) microplastics and non-biodegradable Neal’s Yard, Bentley Organic, Badger respectively, depending on their usage. liquid polymers in all products) include: shampoo bars, and Green People. All It states that research studies have found Friendly Soap, Hain Celestial, Honesty of these products can be bought online that exposure to the ingredient itself, not cosmetics, Laverana, Little Soap Company, from the companies’ websites. the products that contain it, has potential Neal’s Yard, Rolland SRL (O Way), Pure health risks. Nuff Stuff, Triangle Wholefoods (Suma), Odylique See page 35 for more information on and Weleda AG. toxic chemicals in beauty products. All other companies lost a mark under 16 the Pollution and Toxics category as they Microbeads either had no policy or had a policy that Conscious Under UK law, shampoo, defined as a prohibited microbeads only. Skincare ‘rinse off’ product, should not contain microbeads. However, some of the 15.5 companies in this guide also produce Choose organic cosmetics products that are not subject to this ban, i.e. products such As discussed on page 33, green washing as makeup that are classified as ’leave tactics are widely used within the beauty sector; tricking customers into believing 15 those lengthy ingredients lists are full of ‘natural,’ ‘sustainably sourced’ and organic ingredients. For example, Unilever has a ‘natural’ line of shampoos called ‘Love Beauty and Planet’ that claim to source fragrance ingredients ethically, from sustainable sources, whilst failing to provide details. And Herbal Essences describes itself as RECOMMENDED the ‘first natural hair care brand’; defining natural as ‘an ingredient that occurs in nature and has undergone limited Our Recommended Buys are: chemical or other processing which The vegan and organic shampoo modifies it from its natural state’. products offered by the Little Soap As certification schemes offer an Company.

© Alona Siniehina | Dreamstime.com independent check on a company’s The vegan shampoo products ‘natural’ and ‘organic’ claims, we have offered by Friendly Soap, PHB Ethical given certified organic products an Beauty, Weleda, Yaoh, Faith in OTHER BRANDS NOT ON extra Product Sustainability mark in the Nature, ALTER/NATIVE, Honesty, THE TABLE Ethiscore tables. (Look for the [O] next to Caurnie Soap, Pure Nuff Stuff, Eco the brand names). Warrior and Lush. Procter & Gamble also makes Aussie, Organic certification ensures that the The organic shampoo products Herbal Essences agricultural ingredients used in shampoos offered by Neal’s Yard and Badger. Unilever also makes Bedhead, Simple, are grown using organic growing methods Sunsilk, Timotei without the use of synthetic fertilisers and pesticides and GMOs.

All the research behind these ratings is on www.ethicalconsumer.org BRANDS TO AVOID Definitions of all the categories are at www.ethicalconsumer.org/our-ethical-ratings. [O] = organic [Vg] = vegan bar = makes solid shampoo bars As Unilever once again sits at the bottom of the score table and m Best Buys are decided by the editorial team based on the research we have continues to have links with animal nsu er o .o undertaken, the scoring system and the unique insight into the issues that our c r testing, we recommend avoiding its l g editorial team has. 9 times out of 10 this will be the brands that are top of the a shampoo brands. These are: Love, c

i table but sometimes an ethical company which is truly innovative scores less well

t ; ; ; e Beauty and Planet Simple Bedhead Y on our rigid scoring system and we use the Best Buy and Recommended sections BES T BU to acknowledge this. A company cannot be a Best Buy if it scores worst for Supply Dove; Sunsilk; TRESemmé; Timotei; Chain Management. Organics; VO5 and Alberto.

ethicalconsumer.org 21 SHOPPING GUIDE Shampoo Animal testing Reducing your hair’s impact on the planet

As highlighted on page 32, animal If you think through the life cycle of testing is common in the cosmetics shampoo (from the growing or extraction of industry. We have therefore rated the ingredients to the processing, distribution, animal testing policies of all companies packaging and use), it is the use phase that in this guide. Companies will score a best appears to have the biggest environmental rating if they have a policy not to test impacts, and the extent of this will depend on animals. This policy would include on how many times you wash your hair, with a fixed cut-off date (a date after which how much water, how the water is heated, none of their products or ingredients and where the water goes afterwards. will have been tested on animals). In So, you can reduce the amount of shampoo addition, we would not expect them to be you use, the frequency of your hair washes selling into markets (e.g. China) where and the length of your showers. product animal testing is required by As well as reducing use you can: law. l Avoid ingredients linked to deforestation (e.g. palm oil). Shampoo brands that are palm oil-free include: Caurnie Soap, Conscious Skincare, Friendly Soap, and Pure Nuff Best rating Stuff. l Seek out organic products or those that have lower ‘foam miles’ – i.e. that contain Triangle Wholefoods (Suma), Caurnie ingredients that are locally grown and made. Caurnie is a good example here. Soap, Conscious Skincare, Daniel l Ditch the packaging and opt for shampoo bars. Most shampoo comes in plastic Field, Davines, Friendly Soap, Honesty, bottles which may not be widely recyclable. Seeking naked (without packaging) Little Soap Company, Lush, PHB shampoo bars, shampoo bars wrapped in recyclable cardboard or paper packaging, Ethical Beauty, Pure Nuff Stuff, Yaoh or shampoo refill options are therefore an effective way to reduce, reuse and recycle. Ltd, Hain Celestial, Essential Care According to Caurnie, shampoo bars are also easier to send in the post. (Organics), Badger, Green People, A wide range of companies now offer shampoo bars, including: ALTER/NATIVE Natura Cosmeticos, Body Shop, Weleda, (Suma), Caurnie Soap, Friendly Soap, Little Soap Company, Eco Warrior, Lush, Pure Midsona, Neal’s Yard, and Faith in Nuff Stuff, Badger, and Faith in Nature. This is indicated on the score table on page 20 Nature. by ‘bar’ next to the brand name. Although Molton Brown gets a best In terms of refill options, all of Suma’s bottles use 100% recycled plastic and are rating, its parent company – the Kao 100% recyclable. Five litre refill drums are also available across its entire liquid range. Group – receive a worst rating for their However, some companies are reducing refill options during the COVID-19 pandemic animal testing policy. to reduce cross contamination. Middle rating Companies behind the brands Baylis and Harding, Bentley Organics, Fung Group, Laverana, Quebec Inc and A.Vogel. W S Badger, Natura Cosmeticos and Davines are certified B Corporations; companies that aim to run for the benefit of all stakeholders, not just shareholders. Worst rating Each gains half a positive Company Ethos mark for adopting a business model that ingrains social and environmental values into its culture. Alpecin (owned by Dr Kurt Wolff Gmbh), Davines has also aligned its operations with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Pigeon Corp (Earth Friendly Baby), Kao It has set up a range of interesting schemes as part of this, including increasing the Group, KMI Brands (Noughty), Rolland share of contract work outsourced to social cooperatives. It also actively supports the SRL (O Way), Procter & Gamble, PZ Slow Food Movement in Italy, with some products containing slow food and others using Cussons, Estée Lauder, Clarins, Henkel organic ingredients. AG, Church & Dwight, JZ International, Suma gains a positive Company Ethos mark for being a vegetarian company and a Colgate-Palmolive Co, L’Occitane cooperative: “Everyone has an equal say in what we do. We all get paid the same wage, International, Unilever, Walgreens take responsibility and each do a range of jobs each week, from truck driving to cooking Boots Alliance, Superdrug, Johnson & to accounts.” Johnson, and L’Oréal/ Nestlé. Other vegetarian companies include Weleda, Green People, Lush and Neal’s Yard. Estée Lauder and its subsidiaries are listed on the Grab Your Wallet campaign website as companies to avoid due to their support of the Trump administration. Ron Lauder, who sits on Estée Lauder's board, is reported to have given $100,000 to Trump Victory in 2017. In addition, Estée Lauder was one of the world’s 30 biggest cosmetics and personal care companies investigated by Greenpeace East Asia (GEA) over its commitment to tackling the issue of microbeads in its products. Estée Lauder did not give a deadline for removing microbeads, nor did it provide any detail on what it planned to use as an alternative. GEA urged Estée Lauder to commit to a deadline and apply this globally across all its products and markets. On the other end of the spectrum Neal's Yard has never used plastic microbeads in any of its scrubs and polishes and has, alongside Greenpeace and Fauna & Flora International, lobbied the UK government to #BanTheBead".

22 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 Shifting towards If you’re concerned about greasy hair (which is often a reaction of the scalp ‘no poo’ to over washing by producing more oil) A lockdown and time of physical wait until the weekend or you have some distancing is a great opportunity for holiday time before trying a new hair experimenting with hair washing (or cleansing method. not). Be patient. As your scalp becomes We asked you, our readers, for your accustomed to the new routine you will experiences of living without commercial find that you wash your hair much less shampoo products and your top tips often. I do mine once every 10 days to two for going no poo and using natural weeks. I have used bicarbonate of soda alternatives. We received over 100 and apple cider vinegar for over five years. responses, 77% of which had tried going I use two tablespoons of bicarb to one litre without commercial shampoo products of warm water and pour it over my head with varying levels of success. Some of your stories, along with top tips are shared below.

Nicola Bray: My husband and my two with a 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar and boys (8 and 11) don't use any products a couple of drops of essential oil (I use on their hair, they just rinse with water rosemary or lavender). The hair will then and have done so for the last 4 or so feel so smooth! Leave the vinegar solution in the hair (the smell will evaporate very quickly, although your bathroom may smell a bit like a chip shop). My top tips: Wash your hair less. Try and wash your hair every five days or once a week only. After a couple of weeks your hair will adapt and produce less grease.

Kevin Eckersley: Some years ago, when living in the countryside, I started to wash my (long) hair only with water, I a quarter litre at a time whilst massaging think for about six months or so. After the scalp and squeezing it through the a couple of weeks, my hair seemed to length. I then add two tablespoon of find a balance and I never thought about organic apple cider vinegar to one litre of using any soap ever again. warm water and do the same, leaving it in years. I thought their hair would look However, I moved to the city and my for a couple of minutes whilst I shower. greasy and horrid, that I'd feel like a hair began to look and feel dirty and after slummy mummy with smelly boys!! but a few comments and an itchy head, I used Bethan Griffiths: What nobody tells you I've been really surprised by how lovely shampoo again and the rinsing water was is that there is an 'adjustment period'. their hair is, and the barber always says a grey dirty colour. I assume then that I swapped to shampoo bars. It never how healthy their hair is and is surprised if you live in a city where there is more occurred to me that my hair and scalp when I say they don't use shampoo. pollution and particulates, you're going to would have to adjust from the chemical Despite all this I haven't quite had the need some soap. stripping that had been going on. confidence to do this for myself and I still My top tip: live where the air is cleaner! use Faith in Nature refillable shampoo! My top tip is: Start with your kids as they Kirsty Drury: About eight years ago I don't care so much what happens! dropped out of a long career in fashion and beauty media. Usha (pictured top): I have tried Once the blinkers came off, thanks soapnuts with great results. Simmer to a romantic relationship with an 4-5 soapnuts in 500ml water for 15- environmental activist, I began to see the 20 minutes. While still hot, add a beauty industry for what it is – parasitic, tablespoon for bicarbonate soda (this feeding off fear, low self-esteem and will dissolve in the water only when it is competitiveness among women. hot). I began to realise that it sells us a Use about half a glass of water to wash problem (‘dirty’/frizzy/limp/greasy hair) hair. Spread evenly through scalp and and a solution – a product full of toxic scrub with hands – it will foam! Then chemicals that dries the scalp and hair, leave in the scalp for a couple of minutes. stripping away the natural oils and then Rinse out with water. Then rinse the offering the solution of a conditioner to hair with a glass of warm water mixed replace them.

ethicalconsumer.org 23 SHOPPING GUIDE Sunscreen Sun protection without Earth destruction

n a world of uncertainty, the need for sunscreen is obvious; while the rest of the cosmetics industry is awash with confusing and conflicting advice about products and their Ibenefits, it is conclusively proven that sunscreen protects our skin from burning, ageing and cancers caused by the sun’s UV rays. This means that choosing a sustainable option is particularly important; although we can reduce our exposure with hats, umbrellas and clothing, its hard to completely cut it out if we’re spending time outdoors (admittedly we may all be doing less of that in 2020!). But while the need for sunscreen is clear, the associated sustainability and health concerns are less so. TOM BRYSON screens sun In this guide we’ll look into some of the controversial issues around sunscreen such as care while hiding indoors. nanotechnology and coral reef bleaching, and see how they relate to the different products on the market. And, as always, we’ll see how the companies behind the brands perform on a range of issues.

The two types of sunscreen

Most sunscreens fall into two major categories, depending on the active ingredients and ‘mode of action’ they use: chemical sunscreens and mineral sunscreens. Sofiaworld | Dreamstime.com Sofiaworld ©

A fully referenced version of this Product Guide is on our website

24 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 Chemical absorbers safest sunscreens are always going to be Producers of mineral sunscreen have Chemical sunscreens contain organic those that provide the best protection found the problem can be resolved by compounds such as octolcrylene, from the sun’s harmful UV rays. breaking these minerals down into tiny oxybenzone, octinoxate and others, Sunscreens use a number of different nanostructures, which rub into the skin which act by absorbing UV rays and rating systems and it can be complicated much more easily. Sun protection releasing them from the skin as infra- to understand exactly which one provides The engineering and application of red heat. the best protection. materials at a scale of 100 nanometres Compared to mineral sunscreens, The Sun Protection Factor (SPF) rating or less is referred to as nanotechnology they spread more easily onto the skin, was introduced in 1974 and represents (one nanometre equals one billionth of a requiring less to be applied; they are also the fraction of burning rays that reach metre, or one thousandth of the thickness less susceptible to washing off in water the skin (i.e. factor 30 = one thirtieth). of a human hair). Nanotechnology is or sweat. Because they blend easily into However, the rating relates only to now being applied across a number of without Earth the skin, chemical sunscreens tend not to UVB rays – the type that causes visible fields including medicine, materials produce any visible whitening effect. sunburn and the only type that was science and electronics, with potentially On the other hand, the active known to be harmful at the time. significant benefits; one is example is the chemicals they contain have been known It has since been established that UVA use of graphene to improve solar panel to produce allergic reactions on sensitive rays, which make up 95% of the sun’s efficiency, skin, and may also cause brown spots and UV radiation, can also cause harm. UVA Concerns around nanotechnology discolouration, due to the raising of the exposure is associated with long-term are centred mainly around the potential destruction skin’s internal temperature. skin cancers such as melanoma, and harmful effects to the human body. There are concerns over potential can also lead to long-term ageing of the There are fears that the small size of harmful impacts of chemical sunscreens skin. Unlike UVB, UVA rays penetrate nanoparticles allow them to cross cell when they wash off our skin and into the glass windows and cloud cover, and their membranes, causing stress and damage environment – chiefly around the threat intensity remains more or less constant to the body’s cells, and it has been they pose to coral reefs, as discussed later all year round. reported that nanoparticles present in in the article (see page 28). Modern sunscreen labels therefore diesel fumes can cause lung damage, and include both an SPF factor, and second may reach other sites in the body such as Mineral reflectors indicator for UVA; many products the liver, heart or blood cells. Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are sold in the UK use a five-star rating Perhaps the greatest fear comes from naturally occurring compounds and which represents UVA protection as a the fact that much about this technology have been used to protect the skin from percentage of UVB protection, with five remains unknown. Materials at the sunlight for thousands of years. They stars indicating that this is 90% or above nanoscale do not behave in the same shield the skin by sitting on the surface (four or five stars is considered a good way as larger particles (below a certain and deflecting UV rays. level of protection). size, so-called quantum effects come into They tend to be gentler on sensitive play, where substances behave more as skin compared to chemical sunscreen individual atoms and molecules than as since they don’t contain chemical larger materials). allergens and because they deflect heat Although many nanoparticles occur away from the skin rather than absorbing naturally, synthesised substances at this it, they are unlikely to cause prickly heat, scale have only very recently come into brown spots or other heat reactions. existence, and we simply do not know Mineral sunscreens work on the Elsewhere, you’ll find products how our own bodies and other natural surface of the skin which means that labelled simply with ‘UVA’ inside a circle organisms will interact with them. they can be harder to blend into the skin, – this indicates that the ratio of UVA That said, the majority of research into and wash off more easily. This can also protection is at least one third of that nanoparticles in sunscreens suggests create a visibly white layer as the light is of UVB, and therefore in line with EU that they do not carry any adverse reflected away unless nanoparticles are recommendations. health effects. Still, for some, the use of used (see next column). nanoparticles may carry too much risk for the sake of a minor cosmetic benefit. Nanoparticles: how For our ratings, we have decided to apply SPF and UVA the precautionary principle, especially big a problem are since so much remains unknown about While the relative health risks of they? nanotechnology – companies producing nanoparticles and organic chemicals sunscreen who do not have a clear policy are debatable, the dangers of sunlight The zinc oxide and titanium dioxide not to use nanoparticles have lost half exposure are not. More than 100,000 particles traditionally used in mineral a mark on the scores table under our new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed sunscreens don’t rub easily into the skin Controversial Technologies category. each year in the UK and sun exposure is and can produce a visible whitening considered to be responsible for the vast effect, which may be undesirable to Non-nano sunscreens majority of cases. With this in mind, the those wanting to show off a bronzed The following brands produced mineral complexion. sunscreens that used explicitly non- nano zinc oxide or titanium dioxide: Shade, Amazinc!, Yaoh, Odylique, Badger, Weleda, Attitude, Neal’s Yard, Organii.

ethicalconsumer.org 25 SHOPPING GUIDE Sunscreen

USING THE TABLES Environment Animals People Politics +ve USING THE TABLES Ethiscore: the higher the score, the Positive ratings (+ve): better the company. Scored out of 14. Company Ethos: Plus up to 1 extra point for Company = full mark Ethos and up to 5 extra points for e Product Sustainability. E = half mark Green (good) = 12+ Product Sustainability: Amber (average) = 11.5–5 Various positive marks available depending on sector. Red (poor) = 4.5–0

H = worst rating h = middle rating = best rating/no criticisms found Best Buys are highlighted in blue

Odylique [F, O, Vg] 17 h e 2.5 Essential Care (Organics) Ltd Green People [O, Vg] 15 h h h E 2 Desford Holdings Badger [O] 14.5 h h E 1 WS Badger Co Inc Neal’s Yard [O] 14.5 h h h e 1 Neal’s Yard (Natural Remedies) Green People [O] 14 h h h E 1 Desford Holdings Organii [O, Vg] 14 H h 1.5 Earth Aid Group Ltd Shade [O] 14 h h 1 Not the Norm Ltd

Weleda 13 h h h E Weleda AG Attitude [Vg] 12.5 h H h H e 0.5 9055-7588 Quebec Inc Lavera [O, Vg] 12.5 H H h H 2 Laverana GmbH

Yaoh [Vg] 12.5 H h H H e 1 Yaoh Ltd Amazinc! 10.5 H H h H AMAZINC! s.r.o. Eucerin 8.5 H h H H h h H Beiersdorf AG Malibu 8.5 HHHH H h Malibu Health Products Limited Nivea 8.5 H h H H h h H Beiersdorf AG Shiseido 8 H h h H h H h H Shiseido Company Limited

Avon 7.5 h HhHh hhh h HH e Natura Cosmeticos S/A Clarins 7 H H H H h H h H Clarins Holland & Barrett [Vg] 7 H h h H H h H HH 0.5 LetterOne Riemann P20 6.5 h H hHHH hh h hh Orkla ASA Alba Botanica [Vg] 6 H h HHH hHh h hH 0.5 Hain Celestial Group Inc Banana Boat 6 h H H H H H H h H Edgewell Personal Care Hawaiian Tropic 6 h H H H H H H h H Edgewell Personal Care JASÖN 5.5 H h H HH hHh h hH Hain Celestial Group Inc Ultrasun 5.5 H H H H H h H h H H Lalique Group SA Garnier Ambre Solaire 4 h H HhhHHHh hhHH L’Oréal/Nestle Kiehl’s 4 h H HhhHHHh hhHH L’Oréal/Nestle L’Oréal 4 h H HhhHHHh hhHH L’Oréal/Nestle Piz Buin 4 H HhHH HhhH h HH Johnson & Johnson Vichy 4 h H HhhHHHh hhHH L’Oréal/Nestle Superdrug Solait 1.5 HHHHHHhHHhH h hH CK Hutchinson Holdings Ltd Boots Soltan 1 H HHhHhHHHHH h HH Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc

All the research behind these ratings is on www.ethicalconsumer.org Definitions of all the categories are at www.ethicalconsumer.org/our- ethical-ratings. [O] = organic [F] = Fairtrade [V] = vegan

m nsu er o .o c r l g Best Buys are decided by the editorial team based on the research we have undertaken, the scoring system and the unique

a insight into the issues that our editorial team has. 9 times out of 10 this will be the brand (or brands) that are top of the table but

h t sometimes an ethical company which is truly innovative scores less well on our rigid scoring system and we use the Best Buy and

e Y Recommended section to acknowledge this. A company cannot be a Best Buy if it scores worst for Supply Chain Management. BES T BU

26 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 m nsu er o .o c r l g

Toxic chemicals Tax avoidance i

h BEST t

e Y Overleaf we discuss the reef-toxic The companies behind the following BUYS BE U chemicals contained in sunscreens. brands received our worst rating for the S T B Besides this, we have rated all companies likely use of tax avoidance strategies: for their policy on the use of three Alba Botanica, JASÖN (Hain Celestial); Our two best buys score highly on the harmful substances common in many Avon (Natura); Banana Boat; Hawaiian table, are vegan and organic, and have cosmetic and personal care products: Tropic (Edgewell Personal Care); Boots an SPF of over 15 and a UVA rating. parabens, phthalates and triclosan. (Walgreens Boots Alliance); Clarins; They are Odylique and Organii. Companies committed to not using or Eucerin, Nivea (Beiersdorf); Garnier These brands promote the use of phasing out all three substances received Ambre Solaire, Kiehl's, Vichy (L'Oréal ); ‘natural’ ingredients, and therefore our best rating, while banning two out of Holland & Barrett; Shiseido; Superdrug produce mineral, non-nano sunscreens the three scored a middle rating. (CK Hutchison Holdings); Piz Buin (note that mineral sunscreens may (Johnson & Johnson). need to be applied more frequently and Best rating One company received our middle may not be suitable for every activity. rating: Riemann (Orkla). Alba Botanica, JASÖN (Hain Celestial); All the others received our best rating. Amazinc!; Attitude; Badger; Lavera; Odylique Neal’s Yard; Odylique (Essential Care Organics); Organii (Earth Aid Group); Animal derivatives 17 Shade (Not the Norm Ltd); Weleda; Green People. As with other personal care products, Middle rating sunscreens often contain animal derived ingredients such as keratin and lanolin, Organii Avon (Natura); Eucerin, Nivea as well as honey and beeswax. (Beiersdorf); Garnier Ambre Solaire, Of the brands rated in this guide, the Kiehl’s, Vichy (L’Oréal); Holland & following produced sunscreens that were 14 Barrett; Shiseido; Piz Buin (Johnson & marketed as vegan friendly: Johnson); Yaoh. Alba Botanica, Attitude, Holland & Barrett, Odylique, Organii and Yaoh. Worst rating Two companies were 100% vegan Banana Boat, Hawaiian Tropic across all products ( this only includes RECOMMENDED (Edgewell Personal Care); Boots brands whose ultimate holding company (Walgreens Boots Alliance); Clarins; produces only vegan products): Malibu; Riemann (Orkla); Superdrug Attitude and Yaoh. We would also recommend the organic (CK Hutchison Holdings); Ultrasun and non-nano brands – Neal’s Yard, (Lalique Group). Badger and Shade. We recognise that the small-scale, organic and vegan brands may be outside the price range of some, and that these products may be harder to find during Covid-19. Of the more widely available brands, Nivea and Eucerin are fairly good options. Both brands are owned by Beiersdorf AG which received our best rating for its palm oil policy and environmental reporting. Neither brand uses coral-damaging oxybenzone but some of the company’s sunscreens do contain nanoparticles.

BRANDS TO AVOID

The high-street pharmacists Boots Microplastics and Superdrug are rock bottom on the score table, receiving many negative On page 36 we discuss some of the issues around microplastics in cosmetic and marks across multiple categories. We personal care products. Of the sunscreen companies rated, most were found to have therefore recommend avoiding their no policy or an inadequate policy. The following were found to have positive policies own-brand sunscreens, Soltan and addressing this issue: Solait. Amazinc!; Alba Botanica, JASÖN (Hain Celestial); Lavera; Neal’s Yard; Weleda.

ethicalconsumer.org 27 SHOPPING GUIDE Sunscreen Palm oil Alternative packaging Bleach on the beach

Palm oil derivatives are frequently found Perhaps a more obvious way sunscreens Is sunscreen killing in sunscreen, as well as in the other and are affecting the oceans is through personal care products made by the plastic pollution. An estimated 120 coral? same companies (for more details on billion units of packaging are produced On 1st January 2020, the Pacific island issues surrounding palm oil see page every year by the global personal care nation of Palau became the first country 31). Here’s how the companies fared industry, with a large proportion of this to prohibit sunscreens due to their against our rating for palm oil policy and being made up of non-recyclable or only impact on marine life including coral practice: partially recyclable plastics. reefs. The US state of Hawaii will follow Sunscreen is particularly difficult to with similar legislation coming into Best rating obtain without a plastic bottle or tube, at force at the start of 2021. least among those products found in high- In the past decade or so, multiple Badger; Eucerin, Nivea (Beiersdorf); street shops and pharmacists. studies have shown that certain chemicals Neal’s Yard; Odylique (Essential Care The following three brands offered used in sunscreens can cause bleaching Organics); Shade (Not the Norm Ltd); alternatives to standard plastic packaging of coral. Bleaching is a phenomenon Weleda. for their sunscreen products: whereby corals expel the colourful algae Middle rating living in their tissues in response to Green ‘plant-based’ packaging changes in their environment, causing the Boots (Walgreens Boots Alliance); People made from sugar cane coral to turn completely white. Bleached Green People; Riemann (Orkla); corals do not immediately die, and can Shiseido. Shade Aluminium tin recover, however they become far more Worst rating vulnerable and susceptible to disease and Amazinc! Aluminium tin, aluminium frequently perish, while healthy corals Alba Botanica, JASÖN (Hain Celestial); bottle or cardboard tub can survive for thousands of years. Amazinc!; Attitude; Avon (Natura); One substance of particular concern is Banana Boat, Hawaiian Tropic oxybenzone (often labelled in ingredient (Edgewell Personal Care); Clarins; Companies behind lists as Benzophenone-3 or BP-3), which Garnier Ambre Solaire, Kiehl’s, Vichy is used as an active UV filter in many (L’Oréal); Holland & Barrett; Lavera; the brands chemical sunscreens. The majority Malibu; Organii (Earth Aid Group); of published studies in this area have Superdrug (CK Hutchison Holdings); High-street pharmacist Superdrug is focused on oxybenzone, with results Ultrasun (Lalique Group); Piz Buin part of Hong Kong-based A.S. Watson showing that the chemical causes (Johnson & Johnson); Yaoh Group, the ‘world’s largest international deformation in young corals leading to health and beauty retailer’. The Group bleaching. This was due to the chemical is, in turn, owned by Cayman Islands- acting like natural growth hormones, registered multinational conglomerate artificially stimulating bone growth CK Hutchison Holdings, which has and, in a macabre twist, causing the major operations in international coral larvae to become encased in their seaports as well as oil and natural gas own skeletons. If that weren’t enough, exploration. the hormone-disrupting properties of oxybenzone have also been shown to Ultrasun AG is a subsidiary of the cause the feminisation of male fish, due to Swiss Lalique Group, whose main it acting like oestrogen and inducing the business is in the ‘luxury goods’ market; growth of eggs. the company sells jewellery, furniture and other items at eye-watering prices. It was marked down in our ratings for not appearing to have a public policy on the responsible sourcing of gold and diamonds, despite selling numerous products containing the precious elements.

Odylique, trading under the name Essential Care Organics, is a small company based in Suffolk producing exclusively organic-certified cosmetics and personal care products. The company claims to have produced the ‘world's first organic skincare with fair trade- certified ingredients’, and made the only sunscreen we found carrying the Fairtrade logo. © Aguirre_mar | Dreamstime.com © Aguirre_mar

28 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 The following brands were found to chemicals, Palau’s ban covers eleven, include either oxybenzone or octinoxate including the very common UV filter in at least some of their sunscreen octocrylene, and is based on the results of products at the time of writing (in many a local study into the effects of sunscreen cases this did not apply to a brand’s entire on jellyfish, as well as existing research on product range; most also had products coral bleaching. available that did not contain the two Can’t we just avoid all these harmful chemicals): chemicals by using a mineral sunscreen? l Malibu Dispiritingly, research has also shown zinc l Yaoh oxide may also cause coral bleaching due to l Banana Boat it disrupting the photosynthesis of the algae l Hawaiian Tropic living in coral tissues. l Avon Titanium dioxide has been found not to l L’Oréal (octinoxate only) cause coral bleaching, and yet is linked with l Kiehl’s (octinoxate only) potential danger to other forms of marine l Shiseido (octinoxate only) life. Murky waters indeed. Still, on the basis How safe is reef safe? of current research, oxybenzone appears Since it was announced in 2018, brands to be most conclusively linked to coral Studies have also suggested that there have responded to the Hawaiian ban damage, and the most obvious one to avoid are higher concentrations of oxybenzone and increased consumer awareness if you are going to be swimming anywhere in coastal areas where bathing is by labelling products as ‘reef-safe’ or near a reef. common, although oxybenzone also ‘reef-friendly’. Although there is no can also enter the ocean via wastewater independent certification available, A drop in the ocean? streams, where man-made pollution is in most cases brands are using these While there is strong evidence that some pumped into the ocean. labels to signify a product does not sunscreens can cause harm to coral, it Another common chemical UV filter, contain oxybenzone or octinoxate (and is important to place this in context. The octinoxate, is associated with similar is therefore compliant with the Hawaiian rapid depletion of coral reefs is one of the concerns, although it appears to be less ban). major biodiversity crises our planet faces. well-researched than oxybenzone. The So, can consumers simply look for the It is estimated that around half of the Hawaiian ban will explicitly prohibit label? Unfortunately, it seems the issue is worlds’ corals have already been lost, and sunscreens containing oxybenzone and not so simple. There are indications that reefs could disappear entirely by 2070 if octinoxate from being sold in the state. other chemical UV filters used to replace the harm stays on its current trajectory. oxybenzone have similar coral bleaching By far the greatest driver of coral reef effects. Whereas Hawaii will ban two depletion are the rising water temperatures caused by climate change, which is causing mass-bleaching events to occur more and more frequently across the world. So, while it is definitely sensible to choose the sunscreen least likely to cause harm, we may be doing the coral a far greater favour if we don’t take a flight to that tropical destination in the first place.

ethicalconsumer.org 29 COLUMNIST Ethical novice

COLIN BIRCH with a light-hearted guide to trying, and sometimes failing, to be ethical. Sunscreen

It’s nearly time to book a holiday again, much in the way of sun. A bit of research, time a pesky crustacean grabs your toe in and even though this year my choices though, has made me realise how its pincers at the beach, don’t get upset, seem to involve either an Airbnb in dangerous some sunscreens are. The just assume it’s trying to reconnect with the Antarctic or a hermetically sealed chemical-based ones contain ingredients long-lost family. panic room in my attic, I’m sure I’ll that damage marine wildlife when Thankfully, there are cruelty-free and still be putting sunscreen on my list of they’re washed off the skin as we swim vegan options available, which is a bonus essentials. in the water, which came as something – up to now, my idea of a cruelty-free Sunscreen: we all know how vital of a shock to me as I thought the only sunscreen application was having my it is to put a bottle of it in our holiday dodgy chemicals I put into the sea on partner warm her hands before rubbing it suitcase – and then, after it’s leaked all holiday were as a result of peeing into it on my back. over our holiday clothes, we all know how surreptitiously. Further investigation has revealed vital it is to buy another one once we’ve Something called Oxybenzone is the that these ethically aware sunscreens reached our destination. It’s one of those major culprit here – it may be helping you contain a variety of organic ingredients unpleasant, expensive necessities that tan, but it’s bleaching the coral in reefs to increase their effectiveness. Sounds we’d rather not take on holiday with us around the world in what seems to be a good, as I’m all for protecting myself but have to – a bit like travel insurance or deeply unpleasant irony. Hawaii’s actually naturally but I have to admit, there’s a children. banned the stuff, such is the damage nagging fear that going swimming after I have to confess, I’ve been fairly it’s doing, so it must be bad, as I believe covering myself in a lotion containing ignorant about sun protection in the the last thing the incredibly laid-back things like shea butter, cocoa butter, past – when I first heard the terms UVA Hawaiians outlawed was sensible shirts soybeans, lavender, peppermint, carrots, and UVB I thought they were Protestant about 50 years ago. raspberries, and avocado will end up paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland, Apparently, it’s also best to use lotions making me a much more attractive menu and, like many people, I’d not given much and creams instead of sprays, as sprays proposition for any hungry sharks in the thought to the damage my sunscreen tend to land on the sand creating more sea who like their meat marinated, not might be doing to the environment. All contamination when that’s washed out to to mention the traditional holiday wasps I worried about was the damage the sea by the tide – plus, in my experience, who usually spend most of my holidays environment might be doing to me if I it’s best to avoid sprays as you’ll abroad bothering me. didn’t slap it on. temporarily blind yourself when using I think I’m going to need to do a bit However, being an ethically aware them for the first time without realising more research before choosing the ethical consumer means I can’t just think about that the nozzle is pointing directly at your sunscreen that’s right for me, though at saving my own skin – I have a planet eyes and not your arms. the moment I’m veering towards applying to protect too, so I need to be choosing I’ve also discovered that most one minimally and wearing a sun- something suitably sound. Sadly, I’ve not sunscreens contain animal by-products protective T-Shirt when I’m on the beach experienced much in the way of ethical including crushed crab shells – so, next or in the sea – let’s face it, by not exposing sun protection as living in the north of my hideous overweight torso to the world, England means I’ve not experienced surely I’ll be doing enough to make the environment more pleasant? © Irina Brester | Dreamstime.com © Irina Brester

30 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 SHOPPING GUIDE Toiletries

in skincare, and also found as a blend Palm oil within other emulsifiers. Manufacturers of Cetearyl Alcohol often state that it is made from coconut oil and MAY use palm Why is palm oil, but JC has not found a palm-free oil in almost Cetearyl Alcohol yet. everything? Almost palm-free Part of the reason palm oil is used so widely is that it’s Other companies are also trying to deal relatively cheap. The whole of with this problem. PHB Ethical Beauty the large palm fruit is used, for example are reducing the use of both the flesh and the kernel, palm-based ingredients like stearic acid to make oil, so it’s about 10 and working with suppliers to produce times as productive as a soya completely palm-free versions. They bean or rapeseed. also push suppliers for ingredients Palm oil and its derivatives like Glycerine and Cetyl Alcohol to be can be hidden behind over 200 derived from coconut or soy instead. different names in ingredients Odylique have sought assurance from lists. As of 2014, in the EU, food their suppliers that if they are at certain ingredient lists must include times obliged to use palm oil as a which type of vegetable oil feeder material, it is from a certified they contain, but this law does sustainable (RSPO) source. Lush said not apply to non-food products it was moving towards a bigger picture like those in our latest guides: solution to shape the whole industry shampoo, soap, shower gel and wanted the collaboration of other and sunscreen. companies and investment in order to These numerous palm provide a range of palm-free synthetics. oil derivatives bring many properties to bodycare products, from increasing Our palm oil rating thickness or viscosity, or helping skin to What are companies retain moisture, to providing a foaming Companies received a best rating if agent to help remove dirt and increasing doing? they were palm-oil free, or if they had an shelf life. Company approaches to the issue RSPO-certified supply chain for all palm vary hugely, from some providing ingredients used by the whole company no information at all about palm group, AND had two other positive What are the oil sourcing, while listing palm oil initiatives such as declaring suppliers or derivatives in ingredients lists, to others volumes used, or mapping their supply problems? going to great lengths to reformulate chain right back to the mill, OR were products to avoid using it at all. using organic palm only. All palm oil’s plus points have led to a We spoke to one skincare company, huge demand globally, which has had Queenie Organics, which had done devastating consequences. Forests are extensive research into emulsifiers destroyed to be turned into plantations, and how they’re made. It turns displacing people and wildlife and out that even ingredients which releasing greenhouse gases. When technically contain no palm, peatlands are drained to grow palm, they may be made from a process become flammable and serious fires that uses palm as a feeder can result, causing even more carbon material. Queenie Organics’

emissions, as well as health problems for founder, JC, told us that non- Acheampong Kwaku people breathing in the smoke. palm oil-based emulsifiers According to Greenpeace, more tend to be fairly expensive in than 900,000 people in Indonesia have comparison, around 4-10 times suffered acute respiratory infections the price. due to the smoke from fires in 2019, and Manufacturers of these products do nearly 10 million children are at risk of clearly state if they are indeed 'palm lifelong physical and cognitive damages oil free', as it is an exception to the rule due to air pollution. In the first 10 months and used as part of their eco-friendly of 2019, these fires released an amount credentials. Apparently, Cetearyl of CO2 close to the UK’s total annual Alcohol is the most widely used emulsifier greenhouse gas emissions.1 References: 1 www.greenpeace.org.uk/news/certified-sustainable-palm-oil-is-a-con-says- greenpeace-as-new-evidence-links-certifying-body-to-five-years-of-fires-across-indonesia

ethicalconsumer.org 31 SHOPPING GUIDE Toiletries The animal testing of cosmetics and toiletries and the REACH dilemma

adly, almost all of the ingredients that go into our cosmetics have been tested on animals at some point, even water! For decades, Sanimals have been used to test the toxicity of products for humans and the impact that chemicals will have on the environment. Animal rights campaigners have been stressing how unreliable animal testing is for almost as long, arguing that the biological make-up of the animals that we test on is just too far removed from humans to be justifiable.1 More recent studies have shown that animal tests predict human reactions to cosmetics only 40-60% of the time, while alternatives can be 80% accurate.2 And yet, the Humane Society International (HSI), which campaigns to end animal testing, believes that half a million animals are used for testing in It banned animal testing on finished gathered by other companies, instead of the cosmetics industry every year!3 The cosmetic products back in 2004 and went being involved at the testing stage. This vast majority of these animals are likely on to ban testing on the ingredients that distances them from animal tests but, by to be tested on in China, the only country make those products in 2009. And, in licensing the REACH registration number, in the world that has legal requirements 2013, it went even further and banned the they are still financially contributing to for animal tests to be conducted on all import and sale of any cosmetics that had the companies who have commissioned finished cosmetic products that are been tested on animals abroad. the tests. entering the market. However, the EU’s chemical safety Other companies are trying to stay regulation known as REACH (The as far away from REACH as possible, Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation passing the burden onto their suppliers. The EU and animal and restriction of Chemicals), which By insisting that suppliers apply for, or finished its formal implementation purchase access to, a REACH registration testing period in June 2018, has rendered the number, companies can claim that they A total of 39 countries have banned ingredients-testing ban somewhat have not commissioned or financially animal testing for cosmetics, the obsolete. supported any animal tests. Although majority of which are the EU member REACH regulation requires all imperfect, this approach may currently be states. On the surface of things, the EU chemicals used in the EU to be tested the most effective way for companies to appears to be leaps and bounds ahead for safety. Under this programme, distance themselves from animal testing of the curve when it comes to stopping safety tests are funded and organised in the EU. animal testing for cosmetics. by the companies that use and sell the chemicals. All chemicals bought and sold over a tonne in weight in the EU need a Brexit and REACH REACH registration number. Some cosmetic companies, mostly One of the most important principles of larger ones, have been actively involved EU REACH is ‘no data, no market’ – the in organising and funding safety testing idea that a company cannot trade in the research for REACH. Which, in some EU without access to safety testing data cases, has included commissioning new on the chemicals it uses. This principle animal tests. Although the guidelines for presents difficulties in light of Brexit. these tests state that companies should UK REACH, which was originally avoid animal testing where possible, a posited by Theresa May’s government significant amount of extra animal testing in January 2019, remains the most has been commissioned because of likely solution to this impasse. Under REACH.4 this system all current registrations Under REACH, businesses can buy with EU REACH would be transferred to One Voice

32 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 no longer have access to EU REACH’s the government are accepting more or companies which are campaigning substance data. Instead the UK will have non-animal tests for certain elements actively against animal testing. to request that companies re-submit their of its product safety testing process. Consumers should also avoid safety testing data. A move which HSI have described as companies which are marked down It is feared that this process will “encouraging”, whilst also stressing that under our Animal Testing category. To cause significant confusion and cost for “pre-market cosmetic animal testing in achieve a best rating, a company needs to UK companies because many do not China for foreign imports and special-use have a clear policy stating that it does not actually own this substance data. Under products, remains unchanged.”7 commission animal testing on finished EU REACH, it was not necessary to own goods or use ingredients in its products the study data, you could instead buy which have been tested in this way the right to refer to another company’s What can consumers beyond a fixed cut-off date. data, as discussed above. As such, it is Having a fixed cut-off date is important likely that more animal testing would be do? because most ingredients have, at conducted to fill in gaps in the substance Until alternatives to animal testing some stage in history, been tested on data that UK companies have access to, become widely accepted and animals. So, it would generally be untrue if this proves to be more cost effective.5 implemented by the cosmetics for a company to say that none of the An industry spokesperson said the industry, consumers need to be vigilant. ingredients have ever been tested on government’s approach is “unworkable, Supporting companies who have clear animals. The aim of this rating is to unrealistic, costly and will lead to more stances against animal testing is also an highlight companies that are trying to animal testing”.6 obvious move. Look out for products and stop animal testing occurring at present Similar to many other Brexit-related companies that are certified with Cruelty and in future. issues, clarity is hard to come by. Free International’s Leaping Bunny logo, If a company has a policy banning animal-tested ingredients, but lacks a fixed cut-off date, it will receive a middle Hope rating for Animal Testing instead. Which is why we do not give best ratings to There is hope: technological advances companies who are only Vegan Society, in safety testing are increasing PETA or Organic certified as these researchers’ ability to artificially standards lack a fixed cut-off date. simulate the impact of any particular chemical compound on the body through computer programming. Advances in this field, as well as through other scientific avenues, are extremely References: 1 https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used- for-experimentation/animal-testing-bad-science 2 https:// promising and are paving the way to a inews.co.uk/news/environment/body-shop-calls-global- ban-animal-testing-524655 3 https://www.hsi.org/issues/ future without animal testing. be-cruelty-free 4 https://www.peta.org.uk/issues/animals- not-experiment-on/reach-chemical-testing 5 https:// In a surprising turn of events, recently chemicalwatch.com/90284/expert-focus-the-road-to-a-uk- the Chinese government appears to be reach-what-happens-ningext#overlay-strip 6 https://www. endsreport.com/article/1593509/post-brexit-chemicals- changing its approach to animal testing rules-unworkable-unrealistic-costly-will-lead-animal- testing-says-industry 7 https://twitter.com/HSIGlobal/ and cosmetics. From January 2020, status/1107391076955013120

Certifying organic and natural beauty

reenwashing tactics are requires a beauty product described or European organic widely used within the beauty labelled as ‘organic’ to be certified. sector; tricking customers Given this context, certification standards into believing those lengthy schemes offer the best option for making Gingredients lists are full of ‘natural,’ sure you’re not being taken for a green There are five major European organic ‘sustainably sourced’ and organic beauty ride. We have therefore given and natural cosmetic standard-setting ingredients. certified organic products an extra organisations: For example, the term ‘natural’ Product Sustainability mark on the score 1. Soil Association (UK) is widely used in beauty marketing tables. (Look for the [O] next to the brand 2. BDIH (Germany) despite it currently having no legal names). 3. Cosmebio (France) protection apart from trading regulations The following standards guarantee that 4. Ecocert (France) stipulating that any claim must be products bought actually use a certain 5. ICEA (Italy). capable of substantiation and must percentage of organic and/or natural In 2011, these five European not be misleading. And, unlike organic ingredients: organisations came together to create a food, there is no specific legislation that new harmonised, pan-European standard

ethicalconsumer.org 33 SHOPPING GUIDE Toiletries

called COSMOS and, as of January 2017, NATRUE household cleaning products, intimate they only certify new cosmetic products health products or products intended with the COSMOS standards. NATRUE was launched for medical use. For products to be in 2008 with aims certified organic by the Soil Association, similar to that of 95% of all ingredients by weight must COSMOS COSMOS: promoting be organic. The standard also ensures and protecting no: GMOs, animal testing, nanoparticles, The ‘COSMOS ORGANIC’ standard products that parabens or phthalates. ensures that at least 95% of use natural and processed agricultural ingredients in organic ingredients. a cosmetics product are organic. At least It is backed by, amongst BDIH 20% of the leave-on products must be others, Weleda, Laverana and organic and, for rinse-off products at LOGOCOS. BDIH is a German least 10% of the total ingredients must NATRUE’s standard is split into three non-profit be organic. levels: organisation that The ‘COSMOS NATURAL’ standard l NATRUE Natural Cosmetics – a certifies natural ensures a product is made of naturally product must contain a minimum level cosmetics. Its sourced ingredients and may or may not of natural substances and there is a label ensures contain organic ingredients. No more maximum level of derived (processed) products contain than 5% of the total product should be natural substances. These vary from “raw materials of plant synthetic, with there being a limited list product to product. origin originating from of permitted synthetics. l NATRUE Natural Cosmetics with certified organic raw material”. BDIH organic proportion – the product must prohibits animal testing, irradiated contain at least 70% certified organic ingredients, organic-synthetic dyes, natural substances of plant and animal synthetic fragrances, paraffin and other origin and of derived natural substances. petroleum derived products. l NATRUE Organic Cosmetics – the percentage of organic ingredients increases to 95%. Cosmetique Bio NATRUE also ensures products are free from genetically modified ingredients, The Cosmebio label is microbeads and are not tested on found on products animals.2 where 95%+ of plant-based ingredients are The COSMOS standard1 also Soil Association organic with guarantees a number of other things at least 10% of including: The Soil Association all a product’s total l No genetically modified (GM) organic standard ingredients being organic. ingredients can still be found l No nanoparticles on cosmetic l No ingredients that are tested on products in US organic standard animals. ‘transition’ and on ‘wellbeing In the USA, the best products’ – known organic standard is the USDA Organic seal. Under this seal ‘organic’ means CONCEALING GMOS at least 95% of a product’s Ethical Consumer considers Genetically modified (GM) organisms to be agricultural a ‘controversial technology’, due to the various debates that surround ingredients are organically their relationship to herbicide and pesticide use, and the social and grown, and the remaining 5 percent are economic impacts of seeds being patented by corporations. on an approved substance list. In the three biggest soya producing countries, almost all the soya grown is GM and crops such as canola, sugar beet, and corn may also be GM. Although cosmetics may contain ingredients processed from derivatives of these GM varieties, the cosmetic product itself probably won’t be labelled as GM due to it not being a main ingredient. The best way to avoid GM ingredients is to opt for products that are certified organic. References: 1 https://www.cosmos-standard.org/the-cosmos-standard- document 2 www.natrue.org/uploads/2019/06/EN-NATRUE-Label_ Requirements_V3_8-1-1.pdf

34 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 methylparaben, propylparaben, and Toxic beauty butylparaben. However, it has restricted Synthetic fragrances the amounts of these that can be used in products. Synthetic fragrances are commonly used We look at some of the in personal care products and often toxic ingredients found in contain as many as 200 ingredients. Triclosan These ingredients are considered to be cosmetics and toiletries. trade secrets, so companies don’t have Triclosan and triclocarban can be used to tell us what they are. However, studies here are thousands of as an antimicrobial in soaps. Its use in suggest a number of possible negative ingredients used in personal care toothpaste, mouthwash, deodorants, effects of the compounds used to create products, many of them have cosmetics and hand soaps is restricted them including: negative environmental impacts by the EU whilst the US banned its use in l immune system damage Tand health effects ranging from skin liquid soaps and bars of soap in 2016. l a cause and trigger of asthma attacks irritation to carcinogenicity. Due to public pressure, most l hormone disruption, which can affect Parabens, phthalates and triclosan companies have been quietly development and fertility have been selected by Ethical Consumer reformulating their products. Colgate was l a potential neurotoxin (chemicals that as important indicators for our own toxics one of the few companies to still use it in are toxic to the brain) rating. its Colgate Total toothpaste but even it has l increase in the proliferation of We checked all the companies in this removed it now. In our soap guide, Dettol oestrogen-responsive breast cancer cells report to see whether they had policies hand soap was the only product we found l they have also been found to be toxic on their use. Their ratings appear in the that contained triclocarban. to aquatic life and can accumulate in the Pollution & Toxics column on our score Triclosan, which is classified as a food chain. tables: pesticide, can affect the body’s hormone systems – especially thyroid hormones, l Best: no use of the three chemicals or which regulate metabolism – and may SLS and SLES clear, dated targets for ending their use. disrupt normal breast development.2 l Middle: some policy on the three, or The EU classifies triclosan as irritating Two of the most widely used detergents policy on one or two of them. to the skin and eyes, and as very toxic and foaming agents in shampoos and l Worst: no policy/commitment to phase to aquatic organisms, noting that it may liquid soap products are sodium lauryl them out. cause long-term adverse effects in the sulphate (SLS) and sodium laureth We have highlighted in each guide aquatic environment. Widespread use of sulphate (SLES). You’ll often find greener what the brands scored. triclosan may also contribute to bacterial products being marketed as SLS-free. resistance to antimicrobial agents. According to ethical cosmetics company Green People, SLS is known Parabens to be irritating to the skin so it is not Phthalates surprising then that it can cause scalp Parabens are a group of compounds problems when frequently applied as part widely used as antifungal agents, Phthalates are a group of hormone- of a shampoo. It is recognised as being preservatives and antimicrobials in disrupting chemicals that are most one of the most irritating of the foaming cosmetics and toiletries. commonly used to make PVC soft and agents used in shampoos. Parabens are linked to hormone flexible but are also used as a solvent in The Skin Deep website states that disruption, reproductive toxicity, cosmetics and in synthetic fragrances. research studies have found that immunotoxicity, neurotoxicity and skin Fragrances are in everything from exposure to the ingredient itself, not the irritation.1 shampoo to deodorant and laundry products that contain it, have indicated The EU has banned five parabens from detergent. potential health risks. cosmetics but not the most common Phthalate exposure has been linked ones used in cosmetic products – to early puberty in girls, a risk factor for later-life breast cancer.3 Reducing your risk Several phthalates have been banned in the EU but not all, including diethyl l Use less – use fewer products, less phthalate (DEP). Because the chemical often. constituents of ‘fragrance’ or ‘parfum’ do l Buy from companies you trust. These not have to be listed on labels, one way could include brands that get our best to avoid phthalates altogether is to go for rating for toxic chemicals policies. fragrance-free products or those free of l Check ingredients lists before you buy. synthetic fragrances. l Or you could make your own.

Dettol’s Antibacterial Original References: 1 Skin Deep cosmetics database – www. soap contains triclocarban. cosmeticdatabase.com 2 www.bcpp.org/resource/triclosan 3 www.bcpp.org/resource/phthalates

ethicalconsumer.org 35 SHOPPING GUIDE Toiletries The Hidden Plastics in Your Cosmetics

See our new Dr. Ruta Almedom, Head guide to MICROPLASTIC BOMBS ON OUR FACES make-up on of Science at CodeCheck, our website reveals what’s hidden in food and cosmetics products.

Microplastics, or microbeads, are all around us, in the air, in the water and in our soil. Recently, researchers found 25% that the London air is especially polluted with microplastics: more particles are 14% raining down on its citizens than in any other city in the world. EYES On a global average, a human being PE & PET absorbs up to five grams of plastic per MAKEUP & week,2 which is roughly the weight of a credit card. In Germany alone, around FOUNDATION 1,000 tons of solid microplastic particles PE & NYLON-12 and almost 50 times more liquid polymers are released each year from the contents of our cosmetics and detergents3 into the wastewater and soil. ROUGE Codecheck’s Microplastics and PE Polymer Report took a closer look at more 36% than 50,700 personal care products and LIPS found that microplastics are prevalent in PE & PET cosmetics products, posing a risk to the environment and for our health.1 Invisible microplastic particles and other poorly biodegradable synthetic 38% polymers make eyelashes more intense, foundation stay on the skin for longer and lipsticks become ‘kiss-proof’.

Microplastics

We are now only beginning to understand the impact of microplastic Percentage of products containing microplastics per category. particles. Our latest research found that substances such as Polyethylene The recent UK ban on microplastics obvious results and better methods and Nylon-12 were regularly found in in rinse-off products (such as shampoo before restricting these ingredients, products ranging from lipsticks and and shower gel) only solved half the microplastics continue to accumulate rouge to foundation and eye shadows. In problem, since it does not cover leave-on over time in soil and open water, where fact, we found that every third lipstick cosmetics, such as makeup. But, many they will persist and accumulate over contained microplastics, meaning that consumers regularly wash off their make- many years. many women are literally eating it. up, flushing the microplastic particles Once in our body these particles pose in those products directly into the potential health risks to humans. Animal wastewater systems. Liquid polymers: studies have confirmed that micro- and Several controlled experiments have nanoplastics are able to pass into the shown that microplastic particles can Practically blood or lymphatic systems though the damage the environment and ecosystems everywhere! gastrointestinal tract. Depending on having a negative effect on the food their characteristics, the plastic particles consumption, growth, reproduction and Poorly biodegradable liquid polymers spread and accumulate in various survival of some aquatic organisms. such as acrylates copolymer or organs, cause the blockage of small blood However, it is difficult to confirm similar carbomer are also prevalent and found vessels and, potentially, inflammation effects in real-world locations4 mainly everywhere, from sun protection to nail responses.5 The development of new due to limitations in the measurement polishes and all kinds of hair styling testing methods are necessary to fully methods currently available. products, and yet, they go unnoticed by understand the consequences. While regulatory bodies wait for more the public and largely ignored by the

36 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 media or regulatory bodies. In contrast to solid microplastic or microbead particles, they come in different forms: liquid, wax or gel. They have a plethora of uses including as thickeners and fillers in styling products. Every second product in the skin- and hair-care categories contains at least one environmentally concerning synthetic polymer. These ingredients do not stay on the body, however, but flow © Jim Rezac/Greenpeace directly into the wastewater. Once in the environment, they are also poorly biodegradable and remain On a global average, a human for years in our ecosystem with unknown being absorbs up to five grams consequences. Because the polymer of plastic per week, roughly the structures are diverse, many research weight of a credit card. groups will be needed before the full extent of their effects is understood. in cosmetics a threat for the environment CodeCheck’s app is a shopping guide and potentially our health. for health and sustainability in German- Armed with the evidence we now need speaking countries and the UK. The What now? to convince law makers of the dangers, app identifies microplastics and liquid so that they can use the precautionary polymers in products by scanning Addressing this topic requires scientists, principle to legislate to ban these harmful the barcode. It then suggests suitable politicians, manufacturers and activists chemicals until their impacts can be polymer-free alternatives. to agree on the severity of the problem. properly assessed and found to be safe. The lack of a standard definition for microplastics and liquid, poorly How we rated the biodegradable polymers, as well as Find out more limited available data or testing methods companies inhibit this and therefore the decision- Read the full ‘Hidden Polymers’ report In our company ratings we looked for a making process becomes difficult and – https://codecheck-app.com/codecheck- policy that demonstrated a company’s new regulation impossible. study-the-invisible-danger-hidden- awareness of micro and liquid plastics Our partners from Friends of the Earth, polymers-in-cosmetic-products issues or had a clear explanation Ocean. Now! and BUND consider all solid of their current practices. Without and liquid poorly biodegradable polymers any such policy the company lost half a mark in the Pollution & Toxics SHAMPOOS category. OUR SECOND SKIN: There were sixteen companies LIQUID POLYMERS 29% in the guides in this magazine that SHOWER outperformed the others and were GELS not marked down. These companies, classed as having a positive policy, 45% made it clear they were not using non- FACE biodegradable liquid polymers, nor MASKS were they using microplastics in any products: 35% Amazinc!, Bio D, Cut Le Crap, Friendly Soap, Hain Celestial, Honesty Cosmetics, Laverana, Little Soap Company, Lucy Bee Ltd, Neals Yard Holdings Limited, O Way, Pravera SKIN (Earth Aid Group), Pure Nuff Stuff, Triangle Wholefoods (Suma), Wala- CARE Stiftung and Weleda AG. 37% References: 1 CodeCheck Report: https://codecheck-app. com/codecheck-study-the-invisible-danger-hidden- polymers-in-cosmetic-products 2 K. Senathirajah, T. Palanisami, University of Newcastle, Mai 2019, How much microplastics are we ingesting? Estimation of the mass of microplastics ingested. Report for WWF Singapore. 3 J. Bertling et al., Fraunhofer Umsicht, September 2018, Final Percentage of report on microplastics and synthetic polymers in cosmetic PEELINGS products containing products as well as detergents, and cleaning agents. 4 A Scientific Perspective on Microplastics in Nature and Society, liquid polymers January 2019 5 Stephanie L. Wright, OrcidFrank and J. Kelly; of concern per Environ. Sci. Technol. 2017, 51, 12, 6634-6647; May 22, 54% category. 2017; Plastic and Human Health: A Micro Issue?

ethicalconsumer.org 37 SHOPPING GUIDE Toiletries Ups and downs for ethical toiletries businesses during the pandemic

We caught up with a number of companies featured in this magazine to ask how they were impacted by the current crisis. TIM HUNT looks at their responses.

arch and April have been difficult months for many ethical businesses as sales plummet, some staff are off Msick, and others are reducing hours to care for loved ones. The coronavirus has had an unparalleled impact on the economy with just about every business impacted in some way. The cosmetics and toiletries sector has been impacted like any other and it’s clear that the virus is having a big impact on sales, both positive and negative. “Sunscreen sales have dropped over 50% on last year’s figures” Tania from Not the Norm told us. “I have delayed production, and many of the independent retailers I supply are now closed, so they are not buying stock in.” Friendly Soap workers wearing masks in the packing area. Lush, one of the larger companies we spoke to, has faced similar issues but on a much larger scale. businesses that this a perfect example extremely lucky that our product is one Karl Bygrave from Lush explained that, of why we believe companies should not that’s in demand: this isn’t something we normally, being a global operation means avoid paying their rightful taxes.” ever planned for, so we certainly don’t that, if there are problems in one country Not the Norm has furloughed two of its deserve any credit for that. While trade or region, the businesses in the other three staff on full pay with only founder and high-street sales of our products have countries provide financial security at and director Tania Wedding remaining. fallen massively, online sales have almost that time of crisis. She is working from home and currently made up for that.” “It is striking how quickly almost trying to do the work of three people. This every corner of the globe became affected situation was echoed by other smaller in a similar way and our business businesses. Urnie from Caurnie is still Supply chains worldwide is facing the same impacts working, but it has a skeleton staff of just simultaneously.” three. So, with sales fluctuating how have Weleda is in a different position. It told relationships with suppliers been us that, “we make medicines alongside affected? Furloughing staff our skincare products, so we know we Weleda told us: have to continue to manufacture and “We work in partnership with our This has had an inevitable impact on distribute our products – closing isn’t an farmers for the long-term, with robust staff. Lush has around 35,000 staff, and option as many people rely on us.” supplier agreements and funding in shops in roughly 50 countries. When It now has 40% of staff home working, place. We see these relationships over we spoke to him (at the beginning of while other staff have been split into years not seasons. When there is a natural April), Karl explained that it has pretty smaller groups and segregated. It also disaster we support them. When there is much closed all operations around the has PPE where people work in close a bumper crop they support us. It’s how world, leaving staff sitting at home. He proximity. the world should work – longer-term and told us that Lush “has made use of the Others report an upswing in sales. The sustainable – not driven by short-term financial support offered where this is Little Soap Company told us: “We have profit gains.” appropriate, to help us furlough staff found a surge of new customers coming to It was a similar story elsewhere as through this difficult period where us with sore, cracked and chapped hands long-term relationships often built by minimal funds are flowing through the from overuse of sanitiser and harsh ethical companies are helping ease the business.” Hilary Jones, Lush Ethics liquid soaps. Natural bar soap is pure oil situation. Director added: “We are really grateful allowing the skin to absorb what it needs.” The Little Soap Company even said for the help that many governments are It’s a similar story for Friendly Soap. that the lockdown might have had a giving and would like to remind other They told us that, “We count ourselves positive impact: “The pandemic has

38 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 really changed relations in a positive way. Everyone from the factories to the buyers are working far more collaboratively. We are all sharing information and helping one another a lot more.” But there has also been some profiteering according to Conscious Skincare: “Even some companies with an alleged ethical stance have increased their prices for certain key items to an astronomical price per unit and so such companies will be removed from our purchase lists.” Overall, it feels like many businesses are facing the same sort of issues. As Little Soap Company told us, “like others, we’re navigating loans, forecasting cash flow, furloughing staff, managing staff Friendly Soap workers in the postal room. shortages at the factories and have longer lead times on products – the usual supply chain challenges but magnified.” Others are using their reduction in taken a hit. For instance, Lush has had to overall activity to help out co-workers and tighten the purse strings when it comes the community. to supporting others. One core purpose of Looking ahead... Tania from Not the Norm told us Lush is to generate revenue for campaign that she is, “shopping and collecting groups and social projects, but lots of Despite these challenges to the way prescriptions for my neighbour who is these have been put on hold. companies are working, most of those self-isolating and a member of staff who is Hilary Jones, Lush Ethics Director, told we spoke to are hopeful for the future living with her vulnerable mother, and if us “we are desperately sad that this has had to be put on temporary hold during these financially The world will be a changed difficult times. We believe the work these groups do to place and we should all be thinking influence change and demand fairness and justice is going about what sort of society we wish to be even more important in the period after lockdown. The to have in the future world will be a changed place and we should all be thinking HILARY JONES, LUSH ETHICS DIRECTOR about what sort of society we wish to have in the future.” Clearly the impacts both and beginning to think creatively. necessary dropping provisions to my own positive and negative are going to be “One of the good things to come out mother who lives alone in a village five felt for a long time to come, but the new of our new ways of working is a strong miles away and is in her 70s.” ‘business as normal’ looks to be a long desire for us to permanently cut our However, on a larger company scale, way off and is likely to be a very different travel and to use technology more,” said community and campaign action has normal. Weleda. “Sadly and gladly, this change in how we work will go on for long enough to fundamentally change our behaviour.” Urnie from Caurnie is investigating social media live streaming “to show how our almost 100-year-old family soaperie make our sustainable, cruelty-free, kind- to-user products.” This can have other positive knock-on effects. “With the time usually spent on commuting to retailer meetings up and down the country spent outside in the fields, running and walking, the creative juices have certainly started flowing with more time to think. Already I’ve changed designs for several items including totally innovating packaging for our gift items”, Lush has pretty much closed all operations around the world. said The Little Soap Company.

ethicalconsumer.org 39 NEWS Boycotts

Amazon workers protest company’s response to pandemic

Amazon warehouse workers in Italy, announced that it will hire 100,000 new have a medical emergency or death in France and New York have protested warehouse workers in the US to meet the their immediate family”.7 the company’s response to the global increased number of orders during the “Amazon cannot act like this is coronavirus pandemic. Workers say outbreak.3 business as usual,” said Christy Hoffman, that the multinational, which has seen a Workers in Italy and France have also general secretary of UNI Global Union. surge in orders since social-distancing been striking against the company. Italian “If distribution centres are not safe for measures began, are not doing enough to employees stated that the multinational workers right now, they should be closed protect their safety. was failing to follow government rules immediately.”8 More than 1,500 Amazon workers have for the containment of the virus at its Ethical Consumer continues to call signed a petition calling on the company distribution centre.4 Two employees at the for a boycott of Amazon over its tax to take additional steps.1 Research Milan warehouse tested positive for the avoidance. suggests that the virus can remain viable virus in early March. – able to infect a person – for 24 hours on Amazon, which had a turnover of cardboard and up to three days on plastic $87.4 billion in 2019, has told flexible TAKE ACTION: and steel. workers that they can apply for a grant to Athena Coalition is asking consumers, Amazon workers in New York receive up to 2 weeks’ pay if diagnosed as well as workers, to sign a petition claimed that they forced the company with COVID-19 from the Amazon Relief demanding 100% paid sick leave to temporarily shut its warehouse: the Fund.5 The Fund is part supported by for Amazon workers that have to workers say that they staged a walk out the company and part through public stay at home during the outbreaks after the company began a 6.45am shift as donations.6 The CEO of Whole Foods, – actionnetwork.org/petitions/tell- usual following the warehouse’s closure which is owned by Amazon, also wrote to amazon-close-exposed-facilities-and- during the night because a worker had staff suggesting that employees “donate” give-all-workers-100-paid-leave-now tested positive for the virus.2 Amazon has their paid time off to colleagues “who UN publishes lists of companies involved in Israeli settlements The United Nations has (owner of Bookings.com), published a list of companies Expedia and Trip Advisor with ties to Israeli settlements. were profiting from Israeli The UN report came just one settlements through the travel month before renewed calls services they were providing for the blockade on Gaza to there.11 be lifted in the face of the The report, which is the coronavirus pandemic. culmination of a four-year fact- The 122 companies named finding mission, was published include six US-based and in February, just one month three UK-based businesses. before civil society made an “Business enterprises have, urgent call for the Israeli state directly and indirectly, to lift the blockade on Gaza enabled, facilitated and in the face of the Coronavirus profited from the construction pandemic. Gaza reported its and growth of the settlements,” first cases of the virus on 22nd according to the report. March. Israeli officials were Airbnb, TripAdvisor, said to have allowed just 200 Booking.com, General Mills testing kits into the area by and UK-based JCB all appear this time. TAKE ACTION: on the list.9 JCB has been Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) l JVP is petitioning the US Congress to demand that Israel lift criticised for the use of its says that 95% of the population the blockade – https://bit.ly/3cEBn5Q tractors in the demolition of in Gaza lack direct access to l JVP is also asking consumers to email the CEOs of companies Palestinian homes. General clean water and the hospitals named by the UN, requesting that they end all activity in Mills has been criticised for and clinics lack 42% of occupied Palestinian territories – using land and water from essential drugs and medicines. https://bit.ly/2VK8w9g Palestinian territories for “Health officials warn l War on Want is asking UK residents to email their MPs its products.10 And Amnesty that if the virus enters Gaza, requesting a ban on settlement trade and the introduction of International published a containment and treatment binding regulations for companies to uphold human rights – report last year which stated under the Israeli blockade will https://bit.ly/2xSITv4 that Airbnb, Bookings Holdings be nearly impossible.”

40 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 NEWS Boycotts

WETHERSPOONS FORCED TO DO U-TURN ON WORKERS’ PAY FOLLOWING BOYCOTT CALL

The JD Wetherspoon’s pub chain has announced a U-turn on paying its workers, after it initially stated that it would delay all wages until it received government support at the end of April. Workers for the company, who are usually paid weekly, condemned the decision to pay wages almost five weeks late12 and led calls for a boycott of the company when the lockdown is lifted. Wetherspoons will receive the 80% government grant to cover its furloughed workers wages during lockdown. But the company, which announced pre-tax profits of £57.9 million for the six months covering the Christmas period, caused uproar when it said on the 23rd of March that it would not be paying its 40,000 furloughed workers for the coming weeks until the government support had been received. The announcement triggered a public outcry led by workers and the BFAW Union, and caused the hashtag #BoycottWetherspoons to trend on Twitter. 95 MPs added their criticism, writing to the company’s owner Tim “For those of us on low pay, 80% of wages is 20% more Martin to express their concern. poverty,” BFAWU states, “resulting in debt linked to rent, and Olivia Blake MP, who coordinated the letter, and is Vice-Chair rising mental health issues.”17 of the BFAWU Parliamentary group said: "JD Wetherspoon’s The crisis has highlighted the precarious situation of many decision to let tens of thousands of workers go without money to casual workers, including those in the food and hospitality pay their rent or feed their families is an utter disgrace. At this sector. Often on zero-hour contracts, and lacking the sick pay, time of national crisis, everyone, including Tim Martin, needs to childcare pay and other benefits many salaried workers now come together to put people and not profits first."13 rely on, workers in the industry lack safety nets to protect them The company has since done a U-turn and promised to pay during times of crisis. wages weekly, in response to the criticism. However, employees say it is still unclear whether they will receive 100% pay.14 The chain was forced to shut on the 20th March after Boris TAKE ACTION: Johnson announced the closure of all pubs, bars, clubs, theatres War on Want are asking consumers to sign a petition and leisure facilities to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. demanding 100% pay: The closure came just one day after owner Tim Martin said that https://secure.waronwant.org/page/58585/action/1 shutting pubs would be an ‘over the top’ response to the crisis. Wetherspoon’s owner, Tim Martin, initially recommended that staff sought work with Tesco, which has been hiring to cover growth in demand due to the pandemic, during the intermediary period.

Demanding 100% pay for workers Workers have now launched a campaign with War on Want to ensure that they are paid in full, along with those employed by McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC and Taco Bell. All five companies are currently refusing to top up their workers’ income above the 80% government grant.15 “I’m a single mother who works part time,” a worker from Wetherspoons says.16 “I struggle to pay bills with full pay, 80% means I will either have to choose between bills or food for my child.”

References: 1 www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/03/17/amazons-warehouse-workers-sound-alarms-about-coronavirus-spread 2 www.ft.com/content/08395e49-0bb1-4f49-a6f5- c6639ce3d719 3 www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/03/17/amazons-warehouse-workers-sound-alarms-about-coronavirus-spread 4 www.businessinsider.com/amazon-workers-strike- coronavirus-2020-3?r=US&IR=T 5 https://blog.aboutamazon.co.uk/amazons-actions-to-help-employees-communities-and-customers-affected-by-covid-19 6 https://amazonrelieffund.org 7 www.vice. com/en_us/article/93988v/whole-foods-suggests-that-workers-share-paid-time-off-during-coronavirus 8 www.ft.com/content/08395e49-0bb1-4f49-a6f5-c6639ce3d719 9 www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session22/A-HRC-22-63_en.pdf 10 https://bit.ly/2VK8w9g 11 https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/02/is-this-a-tourist- attraction-or-a-war-crimeairbnb-and-tripadvisor-dont-care 12 www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/email-wetherspoons-to-demand-they-pay-workers-laid-off-during-coronavirus 13 www.thestar.co.uk/business/tim-martin-agrees-pay-wetherspoons-staff-following-pressure-mps-2518385 14 www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/email-wetherspoons-to-demand-they-pay- workers-laid-off-during-coronavirus 15 https://secure.waronwant.org/page/58585/action/1 16 https://twitter.com/SpoonStrike/status/1245778482862460929/photo/1 17 https://twitter.com/bfawu1/ status/1247831060710375432

ethicalconsumer.org 41 FEATURE Coronavirus The fragility of workers’ rights laid bare

All over the world, the COVID-19 pandemic is revealing structural inequalities and the precarious situation that workers and communities face. For many, the economic fallout poses a crisis of its own. Yet, as governments, civil society and consumers respond, the pandemic could also be a catalyst for change. CLARE CARLILE explains more.

employed beyond the initial probation. Exposing injustice Those without savings or a safety net will be forced below the poverty line. The coronavirus pandemic is exposing Western clothing companies are the precarious position of many workers “exacerbating the economic plight of worldwide. As some are forced to millions of garment workers in Asia”, continue working in unsafe conditions, Human Rights Watch says.1 Major fast- others are pushed into poverty, no fashion brands are cancelling orders and longer able to work. These impacts are putting payments on hold, fuelling factory being felt the world over as demand closures. Primark alone has put on hold slumps and economies head towards or cancelled $273 million in orders. Garment workers are being pushed into poverty by factory closures during the inevitable recession. New Look has suspended payments for pandemic. Labour Behind the Label. Labour

existing stock “indefinitely”. But these © Garment workers punitive supply chain relationships are Nowhere has this been more keenly not new: fast fashion relies on short-term felt than in the clothing sector, with contracts and fast turnaround times economy workers live pay-check to pay- workers in UK warehouses and in rather than long-term relationships with check each month.4 factories abroad feeling the full force factories. This uncertainty is passed Deliveroo and Uber workers in the of the economic crisis and corporate onto workers, as sweatshops treat their UK and the US have said that they are malpractice. employees as disposable labour so that having to choose between their health Clothing factories in Cambodia, Sri they can meet this perpetually fluctuating and covering their basic needs.5 Many feel Lanka, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Albania demand. forced to continue working, even where and Central America are closing because UK workers are also feeling the they feel unsafe or are experiencing of public health concerns, shortages of impacts. Online fast-fashion retailers symptoms of the virus, because they have raw material and falls in orders. Many ASOS and Boohoo have been criticised for few savings and employment rights to fall of those employed are often immigrant keeping their warehouses open amidst back on. workers, paid poverty wages. Many are the crisis. More than 98% of 460 ASOS Although the UK government has already in debt or live off each month’s workers who responded to a survey by announced an 80% grant to pay the pay and will get little or nothing once their the GMB union said that they felt unsafe self-employed, this money will not factory shuts. working at the company’s warehouse in be provided until June and excludes The situation has been especially Barnsley.2 the recently self-employed – as well dire for those in Myanmar, where 90,000 as potentially being too little to cover workers are predicted to lose their jobs in Gig-workers and casual contracts the needs of families that rely on their the coming weeks. Garment workers in Although acute in the garment industry, monthly income.6 the country are often recent employees, such precarious conditions – and the Deliveroo has also announced a multi- because most factories have only opened serious impacts they have on workers – million-pound Rider Support Fund “to in the last five years, and the turnover are being exposed all over the world. provide our most regular riders with of workers is high. Many are therefore In the UK, around 10% of workers financial help if they need to self-isolate or not even entitled to severance pay under are employed through the gig economy.3 are unable to work due to COVID-19”. But Burmese law, which is only granted Classed as ‘self-employed’, they are not riders say that the company is demanding to those who have worked beyond six entitled to sick pay, childcare pay or many medical proof that they have contracted months’ probation. Others will get just of the other protections that salaried the virus – which is unavailable to most in half a month’s salary for each year employees now rely on. A third of gig- the UK because testing remains scarce.7

42 Ethical Consumer March/April 2020 “As long as self-isolation is a privilege,” Greg Howard, a delivery driver, wrote in The Guardian in March, “there is a danger that workers will turn up for a shift when they shouldn’t with all the risks that entails.”8 Those on casual contracts – many cleaners, care assistants, retail workers Coronavirus and others – face the same pressures. Their lack of legal rights for sick or The fragility of workers’ rights laid bare childcare pay, or wages during enforced leave, means that they rely on the ‘goodwill’ of their employers for whether they will receive any pay during closures or self-isolation. Workers in Almeria, Spain build their home in the local settlement, amidst the coronavirus crisis. Union. SOC-SAT

Already, online activists are collecting © the details of companies that have penalised workers, and are planning for cannot self-isolate when they develop In India, where lockdown began in late mass boycotts once social-distancing symptoms or have been exposed to March, 94% of the population are part ends. Calls for a boycott of Wetherspoons someone who is ill, the virus will continue of the country’s unorganised, informal forced the company to do a U-turn after spreading. industry.11 Many warn that soon they will it refused to pay its employees until it Precarious conditions have always left have nothing to live off. received its first government loan. The casual and undervalued workers exposed “We will run out of food in a few days,” company will now pay its weekly wages during moments of individual crisis. But Ramesh Kumar, who is a daily wage on time, after it received widespread they now also become a visible public earner in Uttar Pradesh state, told the criticism for leaving 40,000 employees concern, due to the scale of the pandemic. BBC.12 “with no means of paying for rent, bills or The country has announced a $23 food, and no warning.”9 Left to government support billion bailout for its poorest citizens, The fallout, though, will be much worse but this only amounts to 1% of its GDP – Amazon employees in countries where there is less public compared to 10% being spent by the US Others that remain working for large money for emergency support, and the and Singapore on similar packages.13 corporations are also at the mercy of the welfare state and medical care are of a “The worst impacts of the pandemic whims of their employers. lower standard. are not only infection but also the In Italy, France and America, Amazon economic, social and health impacts has seen walkouts from workers in of the measures that governments its distribution centres who say that are taking,” Shalmali Guttal from the company is not doing enough to activist think tank Focus on the protect them. Workers in New York Global South says. “People are claim that they forced a warehouse going to die of hunger before to remain closed when the company they’re going to die of corona.”14 attempted to reopen it just hours Even in countries where after an employee there had tested relief packages are large, they positive for the virus. will not be distributed evenly “It’s an atmosphere of fear – huge amongst the population. In fear right now”, Luismi Ruiz, a union Spain, the Prime Minister representative who works at an has described Amazon facility in Spain where two its $200 billion workers have tested positive for the plan as the virus, told the Washington Post, “biggest mobilisation “Measures are totally insufficient.” of resources in Spain’s This disregard for workers democratic history”. represents a public health risk It covers loans or as well as a personal struggle. credit guarantees Research suggests that COVID-19 for companies and can remain viable – able to income subsidies for infect a person – for 24 hours on affected workers. cardboard and up to three days Yet, many workers on plastic and steel.10 If workers will be left destitute.

SOC-SAT Union providing supplies for those in the

ethicalconsumer.org 43 FEATURE

In the Southern regions of Huelva and Almeria, the agricultural industry relies on immigrant workers, many of whom, – an estimated 30% – are undocumented. Although farming is deemed ‘essential’, many still can’t work since Spain has introduced restrictions of two-per- Workers from McDonald’s and vehicle and they live several miles from Wetherspoons work, or because farms have shut down demanding better operations. While documented migrant conditions, before the pandemic. Espley – Owen on Want War

workers may receive some government © support, those without documentation are unlikely to receive any. Many are confined be transformed overnight to greener, on Want says. “It must be a catalyst for to ‘shanty settlements’, with housing more peaceful ones; and that changes systemic change, built on the principles made of cardboard, wooden pallets and which we have been told for decades were of a safe, fair and just world … After this, plastic from the local greenhouses, and no practically impossible were really only there can be no going back.”21 running water. politically so. Over the coming weeks, Ethical Amadou, from the Collective of “It’s our role as campaigners to point Consumer will be covering the problems African Workers in Huelva, says they out,” Nick Dearden from Global Justice exposed by the crisis and the amazing have received no support from the Now states, “if you can do this when it’s work that campaigners and communities government. “There are many people who acutely necessary you can do this when are doing to tackle them – including more have nothing to eat and no clean drinking it’s chronically necessary.”18 detail on some of the topics discussed in water.” this article. We will be updating a list of Pushing for change companies to avoid due to their response All over the UK, campaigners, civil to COVID-19 on our website. Progressive victories society and grassroots movements are mobilising to ensure that these kinds of As the most precarious workers pay progressive changes are made. the price, the pandemic is already Mutual Aid networks are creating deepening inequalities. But by exposing community connections and safety nets such deep-seated structural issues, the for those that are most at risk. Groups of crisis is also pushing us to address them. strangers have come together to collect The scale and severity of the pandemic food, medicine and post for others who has already forced governments and are self-isolating or minimising their employers to act. Companies are exposure. They show that alternative voluntarily improving conditions for those distribution networks are possible, with on casual contracts, and governments are many explicitly supporting local business, calling on them to ensure more flexible including through bulk buying for and safer working. Tesco, M&S, Co-op, communities. Sainsbury’s, Lidl and Asda – usually Trade unions are demanding amnesty notorious for its poor treatment of staff for undocumented workers in southern – are all providing at least 12 weeks’ Spain, as well as the provision of basic fully paid leave to high-risk workers.15 human rights like running water References: 1 www.hrw.org/news/2020/04/01/brands- abandon-asia-workers-pandemic 2 www.theguardian. The UK government’s 80% grants for the and sanitation. Their work has been com/global/2020/mar/30/asos-workers-coronavirus- fears-online-fashion-safety-barnsley-warehouse 3 www. self-employed and furloughed workers recognised as ‘essential’ and allowed to theguardian.com/business/2019/jun/28/gig-economy-in- britain-doubles-accounting-for-47-million-workers 4 www. are, likewise, a progressive step towards continue during the country’s lockdown. healthinsuranceandprotection.com/healthcare/a-fifth-of- proper security. In the UK, unions are likewise allowing gig-economy-workers-facing-financial-disaster5 www. theguardian.com/technology/2020/mar/25/uber-lyft-gig- In some countries, industries are even workers to collectivise, launching economy-coronavirus 6 www.itv.com/news/2020-03-26/ rishi-sunak-coronavirus-self-employed 7 www.theguardian. being repurposed to meet vital needs. campaigns to ensure that those employed com/commentisfree/2020/mar/24/deliveroo-driver- coronavirus-help-contract-government-hardship-fund The UK’s Health Secretary has said that by McDonald’s, Wetherspoons and others 8 www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/24/ 19 deliveroo-driver-coronavirus-help-contract-government- the government is in discussions with receive 100% pay. hardship-fund 9 https://twitter.com/nicktolhurst/ everyone from car manufacturers to Across the world, civil society status/1242366508782714885/photo/1 10 www. ethicalconsumer.org/retailers/amazon-workers-protest- military engineers about the possibility organisations have been hosting webinars companys-response-pandemic 11 www.bbc.co.uk/news/ world-asia-india-52117704 12 www.bbc.co.uk/news/ of switching production to medical and meetings to create new campaigns. world-asia-india-52002734 13 www.bbc.co.uk/news/ 16 world-asia-india-52047263 14 globaljustice.org.uk/podcast supplies. In Detroit and China, factories Proposals include debt cancellation and a 15 www.thegrocer.co.uk/people/how-are-supermarkets- protecting-and-supporting-their-staff-during-the- that usually produce cars and trucks have new ‘Corona virus survival tax’ to return coronavirus-crisis/603512.article 16 www.theguardian. been converted to make ventilators and some money from those profiting from com/politics/2020/mar/15/coronavirus-uk-manufacturers- urged-to-consider-switching-to-making-ventilators 17 masks.17 crisis to the public purse.20 www.nytimes.com/aponline/2020/03/21/business/bc-us- virus-outbreak-repurposing-factories.html; https://www. These changes are tacit confessions: These movements show that the independent.co.uk/news/health/coronavirus-ventilators- fiat-nissan-general-motors-ford-latest-a9420381.html18 that companies and governments could pandemic could be a moment for globaljustice.org.uk/podcast 19 https://secure.waronwant. org/page/58585/action/1?ea.tracking.id=Email_1&ea.url. and should provide better safety nets, mass mobilisation and regeneration in id=4650435&forwarded=true and www.mirror.co.uk/money/ including for casual workers; that our response to the multiple crises exposed. wetherspoons-mcdonalds-workers-join-forces-21801262 20 globaljustice.org.uk/podcast 21 https://waronwant.org/ dirty and destructive industries could “It has ripped up the rule book,” War media/after-there-can-be-no-going-back

44 Ethical Consumer March/April 2020 NEWS Beyond consumerism The Give & Takeaway

which places the health of people and the planet at the forefront of everything we do. We also care passionately about education, awareness raising and understanding the problems we face as a species, as well as the solutions we need to be acting upon. How we grow, distribute and consume food is one of the most direct and impactful ways that we can change the world around us for the better.

What does mutual aid mean to you, and can you imagine your project scaled up to become a mainstream way of working? Mutual aid means co-operation which is at the very root of our survival as a species. We are an interdependent, Dena, Matt and Simon of the Praxis Probiotics workers’ cooperative. interconnected species and the health of one affects the health of all. Solidarity is Our Beyond Consumerism page seeks out ideas, big and small, for rethinking the key, not only to our ability to survive, economic systems and reducing reliance on corporations and money. People all but our ability to thrive. In order for us to over the world are sharing resources and knowledge, or producing what they need fulfil our potential as individuals within themselves – ideas that now seem more relevant than ever. our communities, we need to become We spoke to Simon Jones of the Give & Takeaway project in Derby about how they have more aware of the sheer extent to which adapted to the coronavirus pandemic, and what his motivations are. our ability to learn, grow and develop is totally bound up in the ability of others to do the same. What are the main elements of want more people to be eating locally There is a global movement towards this project at the moment? produced, organic whole foods so that working more co-operatively, locally The Give & Takeaway is a donations- they can be healthier in themselves but and sustainably in ways that place based meal delivery service started by also be directly contributing to healthy regeneration at the heart. I am inspired Derby-based holistic gut-health workers’ ecosystems. We also want to promote by the revolution in Rojava and the eco- cooperative Praxis Probiotics. We procure the values of cooperation and mutual socialist solidarity economies that are organic ingredients from local fellow aid which is why we're called the Give being impressively built by Cooperation cooperative Sound Bites, make great & Takeaway, and we're doing things as Jackson in Mississippi and various similar meals and deliver to people's doors for a ethically and affordably as possible. experiments across the globe. donation. Anything donated after costs Praxis Probiotics cares about radical goes to THRIVE Derby Covid-19 Response social change and wants to play its part in Watch more interviews at Work. aiming to be an example of an alternative www.praxisprobiotics.com

Was this project already started, and how did the pandemic change things? We had planned for the Give & Takeaway to be a social eating event bringing people in the community together to eat. It was always going to be donation-based and a fundraiser for THRIVE. The pandemic meant that we couldn't bring people together any more, but also created a crisis of isolation and people being increasingly in need of healthy immune system-boosting foods, which is what we specialise in.

What are the underlying values or motivations of this project? We all care passionately about holistic health, ecological and social justice. We Volunteers are currently cooking and delivering 100 meals a week on a donation basis.

ethicalconsumer.org 45 NEWS Money Community energy enterprises fund corona crisis relief

In the first week of the government- ordered UK lockdown, £100,000 of Corona Crisis Funds were mobilised by four community enterprises, all of which are part of Communities for Renewables (CfR), a community interest company which supports local energy initiatives. The funds were distributed to local community organisations and networks, such as foodbanks, schools, and mutual- aid networks. Bevis Watts, Triodos Bank UK CEO at Bristol ClimateStrike, February 2020. The community-energy enterprises were able to mobilise vital funds ahead of government, showing the importance of communities having control over local Don’t be a fossil fool energy and other infrastructure. “These rapidly deployed Corona Crisis Funds Triodos, one of the leading ethical banks, has launched a campaign to encourage and show the real value of communities enable people to shift their money away from fossil fuels and into sustainable funds. having their own local energy enterprises: The campaign, Don’t be a fossil fool, follows a survey by the bank of over 2000 people, generating funds to deploy for the benefit which found that two-thirds (63%) of Brits now agree that money needs to be moved of local communities as needs arise”, away from fossil fuels and invested in clean energy instead, in response to the climate stated Jake Burnyeat, Director of CfR CIC. emergency. The survey also found that 61% of people acknowledged that fossil fuels are undoubtedly damaging the planet – a statistic which also shows that there’s a lot of Low Carbon work still to be done to convince the uncertain 39%. The campaign aims to raise awareness about the prevalence of fossil fuel Hub investment investments in banking portfolios, stating that many people are likely to be opportunity unknowingly supporting the fossil fuel sector through their investments. Triodos estimates that as much as £16 billion could be supporting fossil fuels For those looking to move their money through British stocks and shares ISAs. However, 65% of those surveyed stated that into more sustainable investments, the they had no idea if their money or savings go towards supporting climate-damaging Low Carbon Hub recently launched a fuels, such as oil, gas or coal. Triodos is therefore calling for greater transparency in share offer in its Community Energy the sector so that investors can make more informed decisions. Fund, which works to deliver local Moving your money is one of the most effective ways you can make a positive projects to combat climate change. difference. See the Ethical Consumer guides to Cash ISAs and Innovative Finance ISAs The Low Carbon Hub is a social for more information about where to move your money. enterprise that owns and manages renewable energy projects across Oxfordshire. In 2018, it launched the Carbon divested funds: financial performance Community Energy Fund, raising over £1.5 million, which, together with Carbon divested fund 5-year cumulative Ethiscore the investment from its thousand- performance to as of 31/03/2020 06/2018 strong membership, supports over 40 community energy projects. Janus Henderson Global Sustainable Equity Fund 56.8 6 The Low Carbon Hub hopes to raise Aviva Liontrust Sustainable Future European Growth 32.3 7 another £1.5 million this spring in order to finance further community energy WHEB Sustainability 31.6 16 projects such as the creation of new solar energy infrastructure. The money raised Quilter Cheviot Climate Assets 30.3 4 will also be matched by Innovate UK, a Jupiter Ecology 21.3 6.5 non-departmental public body funded by the government. Triodos Pioneer Impact 19.6 15.5 Climate change is a global issue, but Sarasin Sustainable Equity Real Estate 2.0 7.5 local initiatives are an important part of the solution. The fund is offering an Castlefield BEST Sustainable Income Inst -10.8 15 interest rate of up to 5% to investors, with a minimum investment of £250. Standard Life Equity Impact Global (less than 5 years old) 3.5 Closing date: 10th June 2020. For more IA Global (for comparison) 30.7 -

information see: ethex.org.uk/LCH2020 trustnet.com Data from * Data from quiltercheviot.com 46 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 Crowdfunder appeal Vital supplies needed for workers in the settlements of Southern Spain

In Spain, migrant workers providing fruits and vegetables to UK supermarkets have been confined to cramped and hastily constructed settlements, often without access to running water, basic sanitation or food. “There are many people who have nothing to eat and no clean drinking water,” Amadou, who lives in Lepe settlement, Huelva says.

What is the situation? Failure of employers and the government to provide basic rights has created dire circumstances for the inhabitants of the shanty towns in Almeria and Huelva, Southern Spain. Thousands of workers and their families live in housing made out of wooden pallets, cardboard, and plastic from the local greenhouses where they work. Although considered ‘essential’ workers, many cannot travel to the farms due to Since Spain declared a lockdown on the 14th March, limitations of two to a vehicle during the particularly harsh lockdown conditions many have been told that they cannot leave these in Spain. settlements. Yet the closest source of running water is sometimes several kilometres away, according to a UN Operations on some farms have been paused, and SOC-SAT Almeria also says that report published in January. employers are using COVID-19 as an opportunity to make covert layoffs. Already on poverty wages, most workers have no savings and live off each month’s pay. “Under normal circumstances the conditions for the day labourers who live in the settlement are shocking. After more than 15 days of alarm, the situation is desperate,” Difficult to follow protocols José from SOC-SAT Almeria told us in mid-March. Without running water, and in crowded living conditions, they also say they are unable to follow health protocols and are scared that coronavirus will spread. Usually the workers are employed as pickers or in warehouses for the salad vegetables and soft fruits “We’re living here, feeling scared and afraid, because up until now we haven’t industries in the region, which are believed to supply received any kind of help, not in terms of water, gloves, or face masks,” Amadou to all major UK supermarkets. says. We are working with SOC-SAT agricultural unions in Almeria and Huelva to help provide relief through a new crowdfunding campaign. Your support will provide food, medicine, nappies and other vital supplies.

How will the money be spent? UPDATE Thanks to the generosity of our readers, on going to press The organisations have held consultations with the communities to identify we had raised over £17,000. We are deeply grateful for their most urgent needs, which include: this phenomenal response. Our original target was to to • food • medicine • nappies and other baby products • personal raise £6000 in 5 weeks, but we achieved this in less than hygiene products • masks, gloves, disinfectant gel and other PPE. 5 hours. The Crowdfunder remains open as the more we raise the more support we can give to those in desperate Longer-term goals include provision of water infrastructure. need.

Supporting the Crowdfunder will enable these organisations to continue providing vital relief. Donate now: crowdfunder.co.uk/supportworkers

ethicalconsumer.org 47 ETHICAL CONSUMER Give a gift subscription Christmas gift subscriptions Inspire someone with the ONLY gift of a year’s subscription £29.95 to Ethical Consumer. PER_____ YEAR And give a gift of an olive tree to Palestine

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48 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 ETHICAL CONSUMER Letters

Ed: Thank you for raising this with us. content. It’s worth remembering that as However, we will not be recommending we age, we all need more calcium in our smile.Amazon and we urge our readers diets to prevent osteoporosis and to help

£4·25 183 March/April 2020 to continue to boycott Amazon, no maintain bone health. Given that the www.ethicalconsumer.org matter how sweetly it smiles. NHS reports that over 3 million people Amazon has a lot to answer for in in the UK have osteoporosis and that terms of workers' rights, tax and the more than 500,000 people a year need environment, and this type of scheme hospital treatment for fractures caused is a prime example of corporate by osteoporosis, calcium needs to be on whitewashing. The aim of this wolf- the radar when putting forward plant in-sheep's-clothing petty charitable milk as an alternative to dairy. offering is to persuade customers to Sian PLANT POWER overlook the wrongs that Amazon is responsible for. Ed: According to the NHS website, ‘With Smile.Amazon’s slogan is You shop. good planning and an understanding Amazon gives. If Amazon was really of what makes up a healthy, balanced serious about its social responsibility vegan diet, you can get all the nutrients it could start by giving workers better your body needs.’ It is important not

SHOPPING GUIDES TO conditions and give its fair share of tax. to consider plant milks as simple l Plant Milk l Vegan Cheese replacements for dairy in terms of the l Dairy Milk l Bananas nutrients they provide. While some Calcium conundrum plant milks will contain calcium, others contain little or none at all, but as most I enjoyed reading the informative packaged products are required to state Amazon smile article on plant milk. However, I was nutritional information, consumers can left wondering about calcium. For make informed choices about calcium by In response to closing down an amazon many people in the UK, dairy products looking at a product’s packaging. account. WAIT!! If you use smile. provide the majority of the calcium in We strongly advise that those who are amazon.co.uk – same company, same their diets. When reducing or cutting moving towards a plant-based diet products – you can raise money for a out dairy, it’s important that people are research how to ensure that all their charity of your choice. We have selected aware of alternative sources of calcium. dietary needs are met. There are many CRIBS International who supply baby It may come as a surprise to find out good resources for this, including the equipment to refugee families. If that several of the plant milks listed in NHS and the Vegan Society websites. you need to use Amazon please use the article have zero calcium, which The NHS website lists the following smile.amazon.co.uk. They are at least is presumably also the case for home- foods as sources of calcium: green leafy contributing something towards their made oat milk? Matters are made more vegetables (such as broccoli, cabbage Corporate and Social Responsibility. It's confusing by brands, such as Oatley, who and okra, but not spinach), soya beans, important to know this for when we use list calcium in some of their oat milk tofu, soya drinks with added calcium, this company. It's at least something. but not others. I would also have liked nuts, bread and anything with fortified Fio to know how vegan cheese compares to flour (in the UK, calcium is added to dairy cheese when it comes to calcium white and brown flour by law).

We welcome readers’ letters. Letters may be edited for reasons of space or clarity. If you do not want letters or emails to be published, please mark them ‘Not for publication’. Our address is on page 3, or email us at [email protected]

ethicalconsumer.org 49 INSIDE VIEW Onshore wind victory?

Will there be a boom in onshore wind energy following the government’s change of heart? asks SIMON BIRCH.

ith the world’s attention focused on fighting COVID-19, climate change – the other and far deadlier Wplanetary crisis – is of course very much still with us. There’s some welcome good news on this front then as, just before the Corona virus stormed into our lives in the UK in March, the government performed a remarkable U-turn with its climate change policies. In a move which took many by surprise, the government abruptly abandoned its opposition to subsidising onshore windfarms some five years after it ended its support for new projects, a policy which effectively stopped the UK’s booming onshore windfarm industry in its tracks. This policy change means that onshore windfarms will now be able to compete for government subsidies alongside other renewable technologies such as offshore wind and solar. The U-turn came after the government pledged to reduce UK carbon emissions to almost zero by 2050, a target which the government’s own climate advisers Mean Moor windfarm in South Cumbria which is owned by the local community. accepted could only be achieved by a © Energy4All massive tripling of onshore wind energy capacity within the next 15 years. Not surprisingly climate change eyesore and nothing more than an ugly is to develop a high-rise tower block.” campaigners rushed to welcome the blot on the landscape. But whilst new onshore windfarms news: Overnight this led to a blanket ban on may still struggle to get built in England, “We can finally celebrate the UK’s onshore windfarms right across the whole can we expect to see a wave of new cheapest new energy source – onshore of the UK. community windfarms springing up wind – being brought in from the cold,” However, because planning regulations across the rest of the UK? said Alethea Warrington from the climate are a devolved power, new onshore John Malone from Energy4All which change campaign group Possible. windfarm projects will find it far easier works with communities to develop The UK’s wind energy industry was to get planning permission in Northern renewable energy isn’t so sure: equally supportive of the move: Ireland, Scotland and Wales. “The recent changes will have little “This is a very significant “Since 2015, any planning application positive impact on community windfarm announcement for our industry and for in England for a wind turbine can projects as the new support is for large boosting renewable energy capacity in the effectively be blocked by just by one or windfarms greater than 5 megawatts. UK,” said Luke Clark from Renewable UK, two objectors and this is the reason that This precludes most community schemes the UK’s renewable trade association. no new turbines have been erected in which typically operate only two or three So much for the good news. England recently,” said Jeremy Thorpe turbines,” said Malone. The bad news though is that whilst we from Sharenergy, a co-op which promotes Ultimately if we’re serious about can look forward to seeing new onshore community-owned renewable energy. tackling the climate crisis, then the windfarms being built across large Bruce Davis from Abundance planning system in England clearly needs parts of the UK, in reality there’s still an Investment, the online ethical investment to be urgently overhauled. effective block on onshore windfarms in platform agrees that planning is a major “We’ve barely scratched the surface England. barrier to new onshore wind projects in of onshore wind energy in England,” said It was back in 2015 that the then Prime England: renewable energy consultant Gideon Minister, David Cameron, caved in to “We know that onshore wind is popular Richard. pressure from Conservative MPs from the with the public, but we need to reform the “There’s an opportunity for onshore English shires who objected to onshore planning process. As it stands it’s harder wind to play its part in England, how big a windfarms which they claimed were an to develop a windfarm in England than it part, largely depends on the politics of it.”

50 Ethical Consumer May/June 2020 ethicalconsumer.org 51