Ethical Home
The ethical home market increased in value by 16.3% to £15bn in 2020 from £12.9bn in 2019. Our figures show that there was a growth in sales of energy efficient appliances and boilers, ethical cleaning products, sustainable timber and paper, and buying for re-use household products, and green energy tariffs in 2020.
The Ethical Cleaning Products market continued to benefit from the increased focus on home hygiene during the pandemic, but growth in the sector has slowed since 2019.
Despite the rise in sales, many consumers shifted towards using harsher cleaning products at the height of the pandemic, according to analysts. Speaking to the Independent, Richard Hopping, global household analyst at research firm Mintel, said: “Post-pandemic, we expect the environment to come back into consumer thinking at an even greater level.”
Sales of energy efficient light bulbs fell in 2020 after the global lockdown and restrictions hit supply chains.
Meanwhile, the total value of solar PV (Micro Generation) household installations in the UK fell by 29.6% to £146 million in 2020, after the government removed its Feed-in Tariff (FiT) for renewable energy generation.
The markets for energy efficient boilers, energy efficient light bulbs, ethical cleaning products, and sustainable timber and paper also saw small increases in value since 2018.
Ethical Travel & Transport
The pandemic boosted the popularity of cycling. Analysis from the cycling industry showed that 1.3 million consumers bought bikes in the UK during this period.
Around 45% of people are interested in cycling or walking wherever possible post-lockdown, and multiple reports show a surge in demand for bicycles. Our figures show that the value of bike sales increased by 26.4% to £1.2bn from £940m in 2019.
Public transport usage stalled during lockdown. And people remain cautious about using public transport after the easing of pandemic restrictions. The report found that 16% of people plan to avoid travelling with others in the future.
Car Sales
Sales of alternative fuelled vehicles (AFV) grew by 93% to £10.5bn in 2020 from £5.4bn the previous year. The increasing demand for vehicles with lower emissions is linked to improvements in technology, infrastructure, government support and decreasing costs of electric and hybrid cars. There are over 100 plug-in car models on the UK market, with more than 35 set to be introduced in 2021.
Tax Band A car sales fell by 23.8% to £558m over the same period after years of road tax increases for non-electric vehicles.