£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 ethicalconsumer.org 3 feelgood windows Enjoy the comfort and energy efficiency of triple glazed timber windows and doors ® Options to suit all budgets Friendly personal service and technical support from the low energy and Passivhaus experts www.greenbuildingstore.co.uk t: 01484 461705 g b s windows ad 91x137mm Ethical C dec 2018 FINAL.indd 1 14/12/2018 10:42 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.