Our guide to ethical energy supplier cuts through the greenwash so you can select a provider to help you play your part in the energy transition.
We look at the most ethical and green energy suppliers. The guide has rankings for 17 UK energy companies, with best buys and recommended brands, plus which brands to avoid and why.
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How are animals used by the energy industry?
In 2017, SSE was accused of providing energy from a power plant burning dead salmon from Scottish fish farms. In 2022, an investigation by energy company Ecotricity, published by ITV News, found that dead cows, hunt dogs, partridges and foxes were being used to generate energy.
In fact, using animal products for producing energy is not uncommon in the UK. In most cases, the animal products used are manure or slurry.
There are two key processes for generating electricity that are connected to animal farming: biomass generation, which usually involves burning organic matter to produce energy, and anaerobic digestion, which breaks down organic matter to produce a gas that can be used for energy production. These processes can use everything from dead animals and slaughterhouse waste to manure and slurry from animal farms.
Energy company Ecotricity says, “Animals are exploited to produce about 1% of the UK’s energy, which goes to around 60% of homes.”
We’re not quite sure where they got that figure from. Looking at the statistics that the government has published on the topic, in 2022, we estimated that around 1% of electricity (as opposed to energy, which would include gas) came from animal products.
According to the UK government's figures, animal biomass accounts for around 0.5% of UK energy supply. Anaerobic digestion accounts for about 2.5%, including animals and plant matter.
Why are animals and animal products used in our energy supply?
Animals and their products – even their poo – store significant amounts of energy. In many countries, animal dung has long been dried and burned in homes directly as a fuel source.
When animal parts or waste like manure are used for the production of energy, they’re likely to be ‘by-products’ of the farming industry. In other words, they are animal parts or animal waste that would otherwise not be used.
When animal biomass, such as manure, or biogas produced from animal waste during anaerobic digestion, is burned, it releases greenhouse gases – as with the burning of fossil fuels. However, unlike fossil fuels, animal waste will also release emissions if left to just decompose on its own. For example, slurry (liquid animal manure) releases large amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas that is around 30 times more potent than CO2.
It can therefore be more efficient from a climate perspective to capture and use these animal wastes than allow them to vent to the atmosphere: you prevent the release of methane and make the most of the energy they can provide.
In some specific sectors that can’t use renewables, bioenergy including that from animal waste will therefore likely play an important role in decarbonisation. The UK’s Climate Change Committee – the independent body that advises the government on climate decisions – says, however, that it should be reserved for industries with few other options, rather than being used in those that can depend on renewable sources (a much greener, more widely available and less controversial option).
This means that in the long run we really shouldn’t be using bioenergy from animals in our energy supply even from a climate perspective.
What is vegan energy?
Vegan energy is essentially ‘animal free’. It excludes all sources of energy that have used animals.
This might mean that the electricity purchased by the company is all renewable, for example. If the company also sells gas biogas can also be produced using only organic plant matter (although this has significant potential environmental problems of its own).
