Welcome to the the Market Research Archive section of our website. In it, we have collected together all the market research reports which we have come across which look at ethical consumer behaviour in its broadest sense. It runs from 1989 to the present and contains research both in the UK and around the world.  It is intended to be useful to students and ethical businesses as well as the general reader.

Click on the links below to be taken to a short summary of the headline findings for each piece of research. Where available, each summary ends with a link to the original publisher of the research for more information. Sometimes fuller reports are freely available from these links, but at times they may cost many hundreds of pounds from commercial organisations.

If you are aware of any reports we may have missed, both in the past and future, please click here and let us know. This archive is not the result of systematic survey, but simply a collection of all the material that people have drawn to our attention over the years.

 

 

2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 |  2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989

 

2009

• Ethical Consumerism Report 2009

 

• Recession pros and cons for ethical retailers

 

• Shoppers expect companies to act responsibly

 

• Ethical clothing sales soar

 

• Economic downturn provides opportunity for ethical businesses

 

• Support for Fairtrade sky high among young people

• Economic crisis turns UK customers to ethical banking, savings and investments

 

• Shoppers are not leaving their ethical concerns at home when they go food shopping

 

• Capturing the Green Advantage for Consumer Companies

 

• Growth in ethical consumerism to slow

       

2008

• Co-op Bank Ethical Consumerism Report

 

• Greendex – Consumer Choice and the Environment – a Worldwide Tracking Survey

 

• Consumer confusion hinders recycling rates
  

• Pennies more important than planet, say 21st century drivers
  

• Consumerology Report - The Impact of Environmental Issues
  

• Consumers and Ethical Brands in 2008
  

• Consumer perception of climate change and its potential impact on business
  

• Brits 'willing to pay more to go green'
  

• Green Gap survey (US)
  

• Defra framework for pro-environmental behaviours
  

• Words that sell: how the public talks about sustainability
  

• Pragmatism or Tokenism?  The SEE Potential Report:  A Research Study into what Business Leaders Really Think about CSR.

 

2007

• Co-op Group Ethical Consumerism Report
  

 

• Green retailing: Short term fad or long term trend?
  

 

• Beyond the Niche: Bringing Ethical Financial Products to your High Street
  

 

• Britain’s Ethical Shopper:  Which Way Now?

 

• Chatsworth FOOTSIE 100 green washers and green winners survey.

 

• Social Marketing & Climate Change: Tipping Point or Turning Point?

 

• Global Nielsen Survey:  Consumers look to governments to act on climate change
  

 

• World Environment Review
  

 

• Holiday makers pay more for green travel

 

• Families support boycotting companies that don't go green

 

• What Assures Consumers on Climate Change?
  

 

• Keen to be green
  

 

• TripAdvisor

 

• Beyond Packaging: Food Waste in the Home
  

 

• Consumers Changing the Ethical Business Agenda
  

 

• Attitudes Towards Ethical Foods

 

• Holiday Lifestyles - Responsible Tourism

 

• The next big food thing

 

• Consumers sceptical of corporate commitment to sustainability

 

• Adults too busy for ethical buying

 

2006

• The Rise of the Machines

 

• Britain Investing More Money Than Ever Before

 

• It's Not Easy Being Green

 

• Britons are grabbing the ethical bull by the horns

2005

Changing Climate, Changing Behaviour – Delivering Household Energy Saving Through Fiscal Incentives.

Ethical Consumerism Report 2005; ethical sales up to £29 billion

2002

Price is Key Concern for UK Consumers

 

2001

Co-op Defies ban on Sale of Organic Peaches

Who are the Ethical Consumers?

The New Consumer Directory

Corporate Social Responsibility increasingly important

5th Annual International Environmental Monitor

Taking Flight: The Rapid Growth of Ethical Consumerism

2000

Co-op 'Consumers put Industry in Dock over Food Crimes'

The UK Green and Ethical Consumer

Ethical goods get a Fair Share in the market

Animal Welfare Position Paper

Who are the Ethical Consumers?

What the Progress of Ethical Consumerism in the 1990's Tells Us About the Prospects for the 21st Century

Potential ethical consumers lack information

1999

Cost of organic food and drink is prohibitive

Ethical Investments on the up

Ethical consumerism on the rise

The Millenium Poll on CSR: Executive Briefing

1997

Adolescents join the boycott bandwagon

Support for ethically friendly packaging drops

Animal living conditions impact upon shopper’s decisions

1996

The importance of ethics for todays consumers

Doubts about planets indestructability

The Global Supermarket needs ethical products

Shades of Green; boycotts affect purchasing

1995

Consumers vote NO to animal testing

Responsible retailing; ethical concerns increase amongst shoppers

1994

Shades of Green: Consumer Attitudes to Green Shopping

Supermarketing; healthy thumbs up for Fairtrade

The Green Consumer Vol 1

1993

More desire for Fairtrade

1991

The Green Consumer; not such a good friend of the animals

1990       

Shoppers want their cosmetics cruelty-free

More boycotts on damaging products

1989

Fairtrade begins with a cup of tea

Green sales up

Brits are boycott-happy