Which companies to boycott and why?

[cobweb]

Yes, Roxy, I do what I can to help the environment, mainly just buy less of everything, use what I have sparingly, and so on. I am on an incredibly tight budget right now and it's made me very aware of what I buy/use ;) .

[treehugga]

I was talking to some people we see at my son's martial arts class and I was complaining that I had arrived too late to get a hot drink. They advised me to go across the road to McDonalds and I replied that I wouldn't do that. They asked why and I replied that they are an unethical company and there was no way I would give them any of my money. They asked if I bought products online and I replied occasionally. I was promptly told I was hypocrite and I was supporting Bill Gates the mega mogul himself. What do others think of this? Are we hypocritical by using computers and buying from online stores? I only target fair trade etc, but now I feel guilty! :eek:

[harpy]

Hmm, few large corporations bear close scrutiny from the ethical point of view, but not all are set up with the primary purpose of slaughtering as many animals as possible, regardless of the environmental consequences, and selling them to people who already probably have clogged arteries.

The revelations in the McLibel case, and McDonalds' behaviour during it, made me think that their general business ethics were well below the (mediocre) norm as well, although admittedly that was a while ago.

[Noogle]

Treehugga, they're just clutching at straws! Just laugh that off.

I boycott a few: KFC, McDonalds, Tesco, Body Shop, Oxfam [although I'm rethinking that one], animal research charities, Starbucks... Really and truly, any big corporate effers.

[BlackCats]

Treehugga - I agree with Noogle.

I boycott quite a few companies- McD, KFC, obviously, Tesco, Primark, Asda, Gap, Body Shop, I only go in charity shops that don't use animal research - in fact I avoid most shops nowadays.:p (Oh yeah and I boycott Loreal, Nescafe, Colgate, Palmolive, Proctor and Gamble, Nestle and soooo on)

(The one thing I do that I consider unethical really, is use Unilever for my marmite, oh well I can't be perfect all the time.:rolleyes: Actually no I probably do other things that I can't think of right now.;))

[Noogle]

Haha I boycott all those too! I've signed a pledge saying I wont get on a plane in the next year too - starting to regret that one as there's a school speaking course in England I wanted to attend. I might break my pledge for the greater good. :P

Regarding Marmite, it sucks that it's Unilever! But you can get other versions in health food shops! Look around for yeast extract.

[Mr Flibble]

Really and truly, any big corporate effers.

Why? Is a company evil/bad just because it's big?

We all buy from big companies all the time, and I can guarantee that your computer contains components made by some the world's largest.

[Noogle]

My computer components don't matter as I buy big items like laptops/TVs etc second hand for that reason.

They're not always evil/bad, but generally speaking, the bigger they get, the less they value the customer and the less they value ethics. Times are changing, and big companies are starting to adopt ethics, but there's a difference between actually caring and using ethics as a marketing strategy.

I prefer to buy from small companies, it feels better to me. There are times it can't be helped [like my internet service] but on the whole I much prefer my money going into small businesses where the service is personal. I have exceptions though, and I just judge everything on the situation at that time.

Forgot to add Coca Cola to my list also. Human Rights reasons though.

[Kitteh]

I bought a SIGG bottle on-line from this (http://www.reusablebags.com/store/reusable-bottles-sigg-bottles-c-19_33.html?osCsid=51a84ede39462b760dbc72ae1840124c ) place and I love it!



I bought one of these a few months ago, such great bottles

[Andante]

Has anyone asked Alpro/Provamel why on their site they promote using their products with meat and fish?

[Corum]

I was talking to some people we see at my son's martial arts class and I was complaining that I had arrived too late to get a hot drink. They advised me to go across the road to McDonalds and I replied that I wouldn't do that. They asked why and I replied that they are an unethical company and there was no way I would give them any of my money. They asked if I bought products online and I replied occasionally. I was promptly told I was hypocrite and I was supporting Bill Gates the mega mogul himself. What do others think of this? Are we hypocritical by using computers and buying from online stores? I only target fair trade etc, but now I feel guilty! :eek:


What? Bill Gates didn't invent the internet did he? :mad:

I try wherever possible not to use Microsoft products - being a mac user, it's easier than the average PC user. :D Sometimes though, I have to use Word, Excel and Entourage now and again.

[emmapresley]

Has anyone asked Alpro/Provamel why on their site they promote using their products with meat and fish?

don't think they're exclusively geared towards vegan type thingy..there'll be plenty of people who are lactose intolerant, but want to eat yogurt and still are rampant cod munchers.

[Mr Flibble]

The Alpro marketting machine has always been targetted at people who don't need to buy their products. They know that vegans will buy their products whether they spend money on advertising towards them or not. In terms of the vegan movement and making more people in the world switch at least some of their products to vegan alternatives I fully support vegan orientated companies that don't market to vegans.

[puca]

Treehugga, they're just clutching at straws! Just laugh that off.

I boycott a few: KFC, McDonalds, Tesco, Body Shop, Oxfam [although I'm rethinking that one], animal research charities, Starbucks... Really and truly, any big corporate effers.
What's wrong with Oxfam?

I boycott most major pharmacuticals (L'Oreal own Body Shop now so that too), Nestle, Coca Cola, high street fast food and coffee takeaways.

I've not (pruposefully) bought Nestle since I was around 13.

[Kevin2]

Why? Is a company evil/bad just because it's big?
I can't think of any large corporations that I consider to be net positives. I'm curious if you have any particular ones in mind.


We all buy from big companies all the time, and I can guarantee that your computer contains components made by some the world's largest.
True; if you're going to live in society you're going to be affected by it. Still, there's a benefit to be gained by cutting back on our support of these companies. I need to go further in doing so... I'm not close to being pure... but that doesn't mean I'm about to shop at Wal*Mart.

[veganlinda]

I don't boycott companies as such but I do try to buy organic and fairtrade and/or environmentally freindly which along with being vegan tends to mean I buy from smaller companies. I am lucky though as I don't each much in the way of junk or pre-prepared food so most of the comestibles I buy are simply fruit, veg and soya milk. I try to shop either from the co-op or a local wholefood co-op or for fruit n veg sometimes from local organic box suppliers. Alpro has a good environmental record so I tend to buy their soya milk. As for clothes, ideally I buy second hand or fairtrade or from H&M as they are pretty ethical. But my ethos is generally not so much one of boycoting companies as supporting those with a more ethical ethos.

[snaffler]

Ecover (the so-called green alternative) They are now testing on animals and they are owned by Group4 (security for HLS & Oxford Labs I hear) + much more.

[Frank]

PETA US recently discovered that Mars is directly responsible for a series of gruesome experiments on animals. These include feeding mice a confectionery ingredient and then forcing them to swim through a pool of water mixed with white paint to find a hidden platform. In another experiment, baby mice are crammed into "metabolic chambers" and submerged in cold water. These mice are then force-fed another ingredient, starved, killed and cut open for dissection!

Mars is a huge multi-national company based in the US which produces well-known confectionery brands such as Bounty, Galaxy, M&M's, Snickers, Twix, Milky Way, Revels, Starburst and Skittles. Divisions of Mars in the UK produce well-known brands such as Uncle Ben's and Dolmio, while the company's companion animal food division produces the brands Cesar, KiteKat, Pal, Pedigree, Sheba, Whiskas, Aquarian and Trill.

Not that many vegans probably buy Mars products, vegetarians may not now either - it's one to miss for anything else they are connected to.

Send a message of complaint to Mars' chief executive officer via:

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/marsuk07

[pavotrouge]

PETA recently discovered, huh? I thought it had been well-known for years that Mars does/supports animal experiments.
(nothing against you, but typical for PETA once again...)

@veganlinda: what is so ethical about H&M, being child labour abusers? I know they carry some "organic" items but that's it.

[pixeequeen]

A unilever thing: http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/fo...m-oil-20080421

Anyone seen any of this in the news?
I happened to get sent a blog on this link and am intrigued as it's one of the issues that particularly pushes my buttons. You'd think so many people as orangutans would have been more heard of?!!

(I've doubled up this post, sorry to be annoying :P it's an attempt to post in relevant places)

[treehugga]

Yes this is horrible. Although Greenpeace are concentrating on Dove, it's important to check all soaps, shampoos, detergents and food that has oils in it - that they aren't using palm oil, as many do. I check all labels and a huge amount of products contain it. Write to them all and tell them it's stopped you buying their product. If you saw the state of the rain forests - you would be appalled!!

[Akala]

I once heard an academic say "I don't know why people hate companies, there's no reason for it" and that they contribute a large amount to charity. I also read that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the biggets giver to charity in the world.

A lot of these millionaires are now going into philanthropy and a lot of these big companies do give significant amounts to charitable causes. So are companies really not that bad. I'm not totally convinced that its not more to do with Public Relations, and it's not that impressive as the it only amounts to a tiny amount of their profits.

I suppose you could say the amount they give is nowhere near enough to compensate for, or rectify, the damage they may have caused through their activities.


On a lighter note, I like the idea of the Mersyside gran to try and demolish Tescopoly Chief Executive's residence into a community garden in retaliation for having her house compulsorily purchased to make way for a new Tesco supermarket.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/7344045.stm

[Risker]

Charity doesn't automatically equal good though.

[Stu]

Exactly. Cancer Research UK is a charity. So is the British Heart Foundation.

[Mr Flibble]

Can this thread be made into a poll?