Ethical consumer spending outstrips market recession

‘Green’ consumer spending in the UK has increased by almost a fifth over the past two years in the latest evidence that the market for ethical goods is more than surviving the recession.

The trade in products ranging from eco-friendly travel to ethical finance rose to £43.2billion in 2009, up from £36.5bn in 2007 – a rise of 18 per cent against a backdrop of contractions in other areas of consumer spending.

According to the Co-operative Bank’s annual Ethical consumerism report, the highest areas of growth were in Fairtrade food, which rose 64 per cent, and the ethical personal products market, which increased by 29 per cent and is now worth £1.8bn. Sales of organic food, however, fell by 14 per cent.

Tim Franklin, chief operating officer of Co-operative Financial Services, said: ‘Growth in ethical consumerism continues to outstrip the market as a whole. I have no doubt that this will come as a surprise to those commentators who thought ethical considerations would be the first casualty of an economic downturn.’