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Food and Drink

The negative impacts of our complex food systems on people, animals and the environment are now well understood. What we eat and where we buy our food from can have a huge impact on everything from animal welfare to climate change. Discover more about a vegan and low carbon diets in our food and drink news, features and shopping guides.

Shopping guides

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Baked Beans

Choosing ethical and eco-friendly baked beans can contribute to a more sustainable diet. 

In this guide, we evaluate 13 baked bean brands, highlighting our Best Buy recommendations and those brands to avoid.

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Bananas

Finding ethical and sustainable banana brands. Ratings for 22 brands of bananas.

This guide looks into the global issues behind bananas, a popular fruit which could be at risk of collapse. 

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Beans and pulses

Find the most ethical and environmentally friendly beans and pulses. This shopping guide rates 18 brands of dried and cooked beans and pulses, and looks at recommended brands and brands to avoid.

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Biscuits

Find ethical and sustainable biscuits brands. Ratings for 50 brands of biscuits with recommended brands and what to avoid.

Many people love a biscuit with a cuppa and they are a popular store cupboard staple. But are biscuits brands ethical and sustainable?

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Bread

In this guide we investigate, score and rank the ethical and environmental record of 25 brands of bread. 

We also look at the Real Bread Campaign, packaging, shine a light on the ethics of Biona and our recommended best buys. 

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Butter & Spreads

Find ethical butters, vegan butter and margarine, and organic butter. 

This guide reviews 51 butter, margarine and spreads brands, including dairy-free butter and margarine. 

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Cereal

Find ethical and eco friendly breakfast cereals. This guide rates 38 breakfast cereal brands on ethical and sustainability issues, with recommended buys and what to avoid.

Many people start their day with a bowl of cereals. This guide has some exceptionally low scoring brands, but there are lots of high scoring ethical cereal brands available. 

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Coconut Oil

In this guide we investigate, score and rank the ethical and environmental record of 20 coconut oil brands.

We also look at Fairtrade and organic, shine a spotlight on the ethics of Clearspring and give our recommended buys.

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Coffee Shops

Finding an ethical and eco-friendly coffee shop. We rank the ethical and environmental record of 15 coffee shop chains.

Many people like to go out to cafes, but are there differences between the chain coffee shops in terms of their ethical policies and practices? We look at big names like Costa and Starbucks to see if they are worthy of your custom.

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Easter Eggs

How to find ethical Easter eggs. Ranking the ethical and environmental record of 39 Easter egg brands.

The problems with the chocolate industry such as child labour, poverty wages and cocoa sourcing mean many Easter eggs may not be that ethical or sustainably produced. We give our recommendations and who to avoid.

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Eggs

Finding ethical and environmental eggs and vegan egg alternatives. Ratings for 36 brands of eggs and egg alternatives on welfare, climate and other sustainability issues. 

Is it ethical to eat eggs? We investigate the differences between cage, barn, free range, organic and biodynamic eggs. 

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Ethical Beer & Lager

Find ethical and environmentally friendly beer and lager. This guide rates 70 beer and lager brands to find the most ethical.

With some low scoring brands in the guide, and many high scoring ones, it's possible to find an ethical beer to suit your taste and budget. This guide gives our recommended buys and what to avoid.

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Ethical Cat Food

Finding ethical and eco friendly cat food. Ethical and sustainability ratings for 29 brands of cat food, with recommended buys and what to avoid.

In this guide we look at what goes into cat food and rate the major cat food brands like Sheba and Whiskers, along with Nestle who owns Purina and Lily's Kitchen, plus smaller eco friendly brands, some of which are vegetarian and vegan.

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Ethical Chocolate

This guide will help you find ethical, sustainable, and fair-trade chocolate for your budget. 

We rate and rank 84 brands of chocolate bars and chocolate snacks, with our unique Best Buy advice, recommended brands and brands to avoid. 

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Ethical Coffee & Coffee Beans

Our guide will help you find an ethical and environmentally friendly coffee brand. 

We rank the ethics of 45 brands of ground coffee, coffee beans and instant coffee, give our unique Best Buy recommendations and suggest which brands to avoid. 

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Ethical Dog Food

Finding ethical and eco friendly dog food. 

In this guide we rate 32 brands of dog food on a range of ethical and environmental issues, to give you recommended brands and what to avoid.

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Ethical Food Supermarkets

Find ethical alternatives to supermarkets, with guide to 15 brands of eco alternatives for buying food and household goods.

In this guide we rate 15 brands of alternatives to supermarkets. Many of these eco retailers are doing things differently so if you don't have a local independent wholefood shop, these shops may match your requirements.

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Ethical milk brands

Is there such a thing as ethical and sustainable dairy milk? 

In this guide we investigate, score, and rank 32 dairy milk brands on ethical and environmental issues and ask if there is any ethical milk.

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Ethical Supermarkets

Which is the most ethical UK supermarket?
In this guide, we rate the ethical and environmental records of 12 supermarkets, and give our Best Buy advice, recommended brands, and companies to avoid.

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Ethical Valentine's Day Chocolate

Ethical, sustainable and fair trade chocolate is the perfect Valentine’s Day gift. We rate 84 brands of chocolate, and give our recommendations and highlight ones to avoid. 

The chocolate industry has an unpleasant side, including child labour, poverty wages, and links with deforestation through use of palm oil. 

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Ethical Vitamins and supplements

Finding ethical vitamins and supplements. Ethical and environmental ratings for 23 brands, with recommended buys and brands to avoid.

In this guide we explore the issues around vitamins, minerals and supplements and compare the major brand names with smaller companies to find the most ethical. 

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Fast Food Chains

Are there any ethical and environmental fast food chains? 

In this guide we investigate and rate the policies and practices of 10 fast food chains in the UK. Some of these are international brands like McDonald's. 

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Fruit Juice

Find ethical and environmental fruit juices. This shopping guide reviews 43 fruit juice brands on their ethical policies.

Fruit juice is sometimes seen as a 'halo' food - good for you with no problems. But it is high in natural sugars, and may have more sugar added, as well as having residues of pesticides and other chemicals.

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Herbal Teas

Finding an ethical and eco-friendly herb and fruit tea. This shopping guide ranks the environmental and ethical record of 30 brands of herbal and fruit teas and rooibos tea.

Many eco-concsious people may enjoy a fruit or herb tea, and put the bag in the compost. But, it's a surprising fact that many tea bags still contain plastic. A fact you may have discovered a few years later when you find plastic in your compost!

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Honey

In this guide we investigate the ethical and environmental record of 28 honey brands.

Honey is an animal product and not vegan. This guide explores some of the problems associated with honey production, but also ways of obtaining honey with less harmful impacts.

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Olive Oil

How to find an ethical and environmentally-friendly olive oil. Is the oil production bird-friendly?

In this guide we look at the way olives are harvested, after recent concerns about the impact of intensive olive oil production on bird populations. 

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Rapeseed, Sunflower & Vegetable Oil

In this guide we investigate, score and rank the ethical and environmental record of 31 cooking oil brands.

We also look at GM, neonicotinoids, shine a spotlight on the ethics of Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and give our recommended buys.

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Restaurant Chains

In this guide we investigate the ethical and environmental record of 42 restaurant chains.

How easy is it to eat out sustainably and ethically? We review the options to help you make an informed choice. 

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Rice

In this guide we investigate, score and rank the ethical and environmental record of 22 rice brands.

We also look at its climate impact, use of GM, shine a spotlight on the ethics of Just Trading Scotland and give our recommended buys.

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Soft Drinks

Finding ethical and environmental soft drinks. We rate 49 brands of soft drinks on their ethical and environmental record, with recommended brands and what to avoid.

This guide includes a range of soft drinks including energy drinks, carbonated fruit drinks and traditional fizzy drinks. 

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Tea

Finding an ethical and eco-friendly sustainable tea. We rank and rate 45 tea brands on their ethical and environmental record.

How to the mainstream tea brands like PG Tips, Tetly, Twinings and Yorkshire compare with smaller ethical brands? We look at their policies, prices and supply chains to see who makes ethical tea. 

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Image representing the Vegan and Meat Alternative Foods shopping guide

Vegan and Meat Alternative Foods

In this guide, we look at a range of meat alternatives, including veggie burgers, sausages, mince and more. 

We provide ethical & environmental rankings of 36 meat alternative brands, including tofu, plus Best Buy advice, recommended brands and companies to avoid. 

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Vegan and plant milks

All plant milks have lower emissions and land use than dairy milk, but are some more ethical and environmentally friendly than others?
This guide includes ethical & environmental rankings for 20 vegan plant milk brands, including organic and powdered plant milk.  

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Vegan cheese

Is vegan cheese better for the environment and more ethical? We rate and review 17 vegan cheese brands, with recommended brands and which brands to avoid.

In this guide to ethical vegan cheese we take a look at the ethics of cheese companies from major international dairy brands, to small artisan independent producers.

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