Shop “Ethically” on a Budget – Save Money, Save the World
We are a consumer society; there is no escaping that fact. Very few of us have the capacity, the skills, or the time to grow and make all of our food, clothing, and household items. So, shopping is unavoidable. But how can we shop “ethically,” and how can we do that on a budget?
What is ethical shopping?
Ethical shopping can mean different things to different people; because our ethics are different, the shopping choices that we make based on those will be different, too.
Basically, when we try to make shopping choices that fit in with our beliefs, we are shopping ethically.
Way back in the 90s, many of us started to look for animal-cruelty free brands when we were buying cosmetics and toiletries. The pressure this put on big cosmetics brands caused a number of them to stop testing on animals – that is how powerful ethical shopping can be – but PETA have more info if you are keen to check a company’s policies before you buy.
Shoppers were also urged to avoid buying any aerosol that used CFCs, after we discovered our deodorants and hairsprays had been poking a giant hole in the ozone layer.
More recently, we became concerned with child labour (yes, we saved the animals before we went back for the kids, for shame.) Regardless of our individual views on other issues, this is one horrifying area where we are probably all united; we don’t like to think of our cheap produce being harvested or processed by tiny little people that should be warm and safe in school.
Then we started to think about the environmental impact of our fast fashion addiction, food miles, and the single-use plastic plague.
Today, we also have the political impact of our shopping to worry about. Where is our money going, when we buy from this company? What are they buying with it?
Who are we hurting, when we shop?
Most of us don’t want our weekly shop to hurt anyone. We just want to make dinner, feed the kids, bath the kids, put the kids to bed.
Why is Ethical Shopping Difficult?
Times are hard. Money is tight. And when we have shopping to do, cost is always going to be a factor.
Companies that use unethical practises do so in order to provide cheap goods – and increase their own profit margins, of course.
We want shoes on our kids’ feet. We want food on the table. And if we want both of those things at the same time, it can be very difficult to try to tick all of the “ethical” boxes when shopping.
If I have £20 in my purse, I will have to go for the cheaper shoes, and the cheaper food.
And the cheaper shoes might be cheap because they were made by a child.
The cheaper food might be cheap because of exploitation of farmers by big companies.
And I, the consumer, am in turn being exploited by the big companies.
They know we have no spare cash.
They know we have to buy cheaply.
And they use our purchases to demonstrate “demand”for these cheap goods, and continue their unethical practises.
It is a cycle that will be very difficult to break.
So, What Can We Do?
If we were all rich, we could force change by only buying ethically sourced goods.
We are not all rich, so that one won’t work.
Why not try to make some small changes where you can?
We can’t all afford to make the switch to organic, grass-fed, non-everything-bad. Here are some ways in which you can still shop ethically even when money is tight;
Your Weekly Shop
Shop local, in-season foods when you can.
It can be more expensive to buy from your local greengrocer than the big supermarket, but if you are worried about food miles and single use plastic, shopping local will tick those two boxes for you.
How will this save you money if it is more expensive?
Often, your local greengrocer will have freshly picked, in-season produce. And these will last longer in your kitchen than fruit and veg that has been picked 2000 miles away, frozen, shipped, thawed, and then put on a supermarket shelf.
It is nice to have strawberries in December, but have you noticed how they all grow mouldy beards as soon as you get them home? That’s the travel and storage; they don’t like it. If you can hold on til summer, local berries will be fresh and beard-free for a lot longer.
Make one change.
Pick one thing that you are going to change in your weekly shop, and work on achieving that goal. Look at the labels and avoid anything containing palm oil, for example, and you will already have made a difference to the planet.
For more info on food shopping ethically, ethicalninja has some great tips here.
Clothes Shopping
This is where it gets much easier to make ethical choices.
Food shopping is an ethical minefield, with lots of labels to read and brand research to be done.
But if you want to shop for clothes in the most ethical way possible, and save a lot of money?
Shop Second Hand
It really is that simple.
- You don’t have to worry about supporting a brand that uses unethical practises.
- You can get high-quality barely-used (and often as-new) items for a fraction of the price.
- Clothing and shoes will get a second lease of life and be kept out of landfill.
- You can opt for the higher quality, longer-lasting brands, rather than the cheap, fall-apart-after-two-washes items. (A good quality second hand coat might cost you £5 and last for ten years, while a cheap brand new coat might cost £20 and last six months.)
- Kids grow so quickly; you can get a good season of wear out of their clothes and the re-donate, keeping the clothing in circulation and saving the planet.
- If you are buying from a charity shop, you know where your money is going. It is not going to fund a rainforest-chopper-downer or an arms dealer; it is going to make sure Mrs McGillygooley down the road has a hot dinner tonight, or kids in hospital have toys to play with.
- If you buy second-hand online, you also know that you are not supporting a big company with shady morals. You are helping pay someone’s electricity bill, or school lunches for the week. (And believe me, those people are grateful for your support.)
Extra Added Bonus Benefit
If you shop for your clothing second hand, you will have more money in your food shopping budget. That means that if you do find a change you want to make and it costs a little more, you can do it. Win!
So, there we are.
Ethical shopping doesn’t have to be the preserve of the privileged. Although it would be expensive to make all of the changes that we are being told to make on a daily basis, we can all do some small things to help save the world.
The biggest, for us, has definitely been to shop second-hand for clothing and home goods. This has freed up a little of our shopping budget to make some changes elsewhere. Why not pop into your local charity shop next time you need something, and see what bargains you can find?
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I try my best to shop ethically and like you said sometimes is not that easy but supporting local business is great way to begin. Thank you for sharing these tips.
Thank you for your comment! It is hard, especially when tbe ethical choices can cost so much more. Thank you for reading xx