£4·25 182 Jan/Feb 2020 www.ethicalconsumer.org We reveal the ethical positives & negatives of batteries SHOPPING GUIDES TO Batteries Broadband Cameras Email providers Subscription TV TVs PLUS Updated: Our list of oppressive regimes CAPITAL AT RISK. INVESTMENTS ARE LONG TERM AND MAY NOT BE READILY REALISABLE. ABUNDANCE IS AUTHORISED AND REGULATED BY THE FINANCIAL CONDUCT AUTHORITY (525432). add to your without avoiding retirement pot social responsibility abundance investment make good money abundanceinvestment.com ® THE ORIG INAL S I L I C O N E M E N S TRU A L C U P 2 Ethical Consumer Jan/Feb 2020 ETHICAL CONSUMER Editorial WHO’S WHO elcome to Ethical things, the role of hydrogen as a key THIS ISSUE’S EDITOR Josie Wexler Consumer’s last issue of player in energy storage. And we heard PROOFING Ciara Maginness (Little Blue Pencil) WRITERS/RESEARCHERS Jane Turner, Tim Hunt, the decade! This issue is from our youngest ever panel member – Rob Harrison, Anna Clayton, Joanna Long, focused on various electrical 14-year-old Omi – a Youth Ambassador Josie Wexler, Ruth Strange, Mackenzie Denyer, Wgoods and services, featuring guides to for Action for Conservation. When Clare Carlile, Francesca de la Torre, Alex Crumbie, batteries, TVs, subscription TV, cameras, asked by the audience what she felt the Tom Bryson REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Simon Birch, Colin Birch email providers and broadband. greatest barrier to progress was, she DESIGN Tom Lynton Mining and minerals are inevitably said parents! LAYOUT Adele Armistead (Moonloft), Jane Turner a major theme throughout, as making Receiving the most enthusiastic COVER Tom Lynton electrical goods uses a huge cocktail of applause from the audience though was CARTOONS Marc Roberts, Andy Vine, Richard Liptrot, metals, with supply chains that reach a rousing speech from Asad Rahman, Mike Bryson from the salt lakes of Argentina to the chief executive at War on Want with AD SALES Simon Birch SUBSCRIPTIONS Elizabeth Chater, makeshift dirt shafts in the Democratic hard-hitting data on the actual impacts Francesca Thomas Republic of Congo. of climate change now on communities PRESS ENQUIRIES Simon Birch, Tim Hunt Another major issue covered is in India, Mozambique, the Caribbean ENQUIRIES Francesca Thomas internet privacy and CCTV, because and Pakistan. WEB EDITOR Sophie Billington we’re not convinced by the argument For readers who want to get a sense THANKS ALSO TO Marlous Veldt, Merle Büter, Haneen Hameed that “if you do nothing wrong, you’ve of the event, we have audio recordings nothing to fear”. As my dad says, this is of some of our speakers as well as All material correct one month before cover date and © Ethical Consumer Research Association backwards – it should be: “if they don’t PowerPoints available to download from Ltd. ISSN 0955 8608 do anything wrong, you’ve nothing to our website at: www.ethicalconsumer. Printed with vegetable ink by RAP Spiderweb Ltd, fear.” org/ethical-consumer-conference-2019. c/o the Commercial Centre, Clowes Centre, In several of the sectors it was hard to Hollinwood, Oldham OL9 7LY. 0161 947 3700 enthusiastically recommend companies. Ethical Lifestyles PAPER 100% post-consumer waste, chlorine-free Given the rather unappealing nature Crowdfunder and sourced from the only UK paper merchant of most of the broadband companies We are nearing the end of our supplying only recycled papers – Paperback (www.paperbackpaper.co.uk) covered, we were interested to hear talk Crowdfunder to create an ethical RETAIL DISTRIBUTION is handled by Central Books of nationalised broadband during the lifestyle toolkit with the Permaculture on 0845 458 9911. election campaign. Association, which will help identify Ethical Consumer is a member of INK everyday actions people can take to (independent news collective), an association of protect ecosystems and communities. radical and alternative publishers. Our conference www.ink.uk.com Ethical Consumer held its Support us at www.crowdfunder. biggest conference yet in co.uk/ethical-lifestyle-toolkit We are a Living Wage employer, a multi-stakeholder co-op, and Fair Tax Mark accredited. October at Amnesty’s HQ in London. For parts of the Signing off for 2019 event there was standing Our next issue is food based, room only with nearly 300 and will feature guides to milk, people packed in to hear plant milks, vegan cheese, some great panels of bananas, honey and baked speakers explain beans. the work they were In the meantime, ABOUT THE ADVERTISERS doing to help tackle thanks for your ECRA checks out advertisers before accepting their climate change support in 2019, Happy ads and reserves the right to refuse any advert and environmental Christmas, and see you in COVERED IN PREVIOUS PRODUCT GUIDES Abundance breakdown. the New Year. (177), Kingfisher Toothpaste (165), Mooncup We heard, for (179), Natracare (179), THTC Clothing (180), Vegetarian Shoes (162), Windmill Organics (178), example, from Infinity Wholefoods (178). Chris Goodall OTHER ADVERTISERS Amnesty International, Egni about his Co-op, Energy4All, Fair Trade Foundation, Green forthcoming book Building Store, Juno, Investing Ethically, Practical JOSIE WEXLER Action, Refugee Council. where he was looking EDITOR at, amongst other 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 Be part of an exciting venture delivering Community Owned Solar Panels on Schools new share offer NOW open! The Schools’ Energy Co-operative has already successfully installed community funded solar panels target of on 61 schools and a children’s hospice. It is now issuing 4.5% shar more shares to enable it e interest from 1st feelgood windows to install solar panels on April 2020 Enjoy the comfort and energy efficiency more schools. of triple glazed timber windows and doors ® Download your Share Offer-Visit: Options to suit all www.schools-energy-coop.co.uk budgets or call us on: 01229 821028 Friendly personal service and technical support Investments in shares of renewable energy co-operatives and community benefit societies are long term investments to deliver an environmental and social impact as well as a financial return. from the low energy and Passivhaus experts As with any investment there are risks. Your capital is at risk and may not be readily realisable. Returns are projected, variable, depend on performance of the project and are not guaranteed. Consider all risks before investing. As unregulated share offers, investments do not receive the www.greenbuildingstore.co.uk protection of the Government’s Financial Services Compensation Scheme and investors do not t: 01484 461705 have recourse to the Financial Ombudsman Service. g b s windows ad 91x137mm Ethical C dec 2018 FINAL.indd 1 14/12/2018 10:42 4 Ethical Consumer Jan/Feb 2020 ETHICAL CONSUMER Contents 39 FEATURES SHOPPING GUIDES 40 Trees for Life Batteries How our gift subscriptions fund olive 12 Introduction trees in Palastine 13 Metals and mining issues 42 Oppressive Regimes 14 How we’ve updated our list Score Table & Best Buys 15 Recycling batteries 40 13 NEWS 06 Food & Home Pig welfare, new Best Buy Labels awarded Email Providers 08 Boycotts 19 Introduction Puma, Israeli settlements, XR and 20 Score Table & Best Buys Amazonia 09 Clothes Broadband Ethical t-shirts, audit failure 11 22 Score Table and Best Buys 10 Beyond consumerism 24 Privacy Libraries of Things 26 Digital Rights 11 Climate BP or not BP, climate bank, climate Television strike 28 Introduction 39 Thinker 30 Score Table & Best Buys Transparency and engagement 32 Maquilas in Mexico desperately needed for agricultural workers in Almeria Subscription TV 46 Money 33 Score Table and Best Buys Shareholder democracy, Customer Union, Equator banks Cameras 47 Tax justice 34 Introduction Manifesto, Fair Tax Mark news 35 Links to hunting and 50 REGULARS surveillance 36 Score Table & Best Buys 40 Ethical Novice Trials and tribulations of trying to be 35 ethical: Televisions 41 Christmas gift subscriptions Give a gift that lasts all year. 48 Letters A regular forum for readers’ views 50 Inside view New models for social housing ethicalconsumer.org 5 NEWS Food & home the minimum UK & EU standards. Some well known high street Pigs in chains chains have already made the switch to one of these high welfare labels. For example, the Co-op only sells Outdoor Bred RSPCA The Farms Not Factories group has just launched a campaign to Assured pork throughout their entire own-brand fresh pork urge high street food chains to support high welfare pig farms. range. Shockingly, it found that 73% of the 60 high street supermarkets Farms Not Factories are calling on people to petition high and food chains it surveyed sell pork from factory farms. street food chain and supermarket CEOs, urging them to The vast majority of these don’t offer a single high welfare only source high welfare pork across their entire own brand alternative.