Clear definitions for the certifications and labels you'll see on ethical products.
This glossary defines the ethical shopping terms UK consumers meet most often, from B Corp and Fairtrade to greenwashing, circularity and Scope 3 emissions. Each entry gives a plain-English definition, whether the term is legally regulated in the UK, and how much weight it should carry in a buying decision.
Contains no animal-derived ingredients and no animal byproducts.
Neither the finished product nor its ingredients were tested on animals.
A for-profit company independently verified to meet high social and environmental standards.
U.S. federal certification for food and farming free from synthetic pesticides, GMOs, and irradiation.
Producers in developing countries are paid a fair minimum price plus a community premium.
The international gold standard for cruelty-free personal care and household products.
Made without genetically modified organisms, typically verified to a 0.9% threshold.
Personal care products free from the Environmental Working Group's list of ingredients of concern.
Certifies farms that meet standards for biodiversity, worker welfare, and climate-smart agriculture.
Wood, paper, and forest products from responsibly managed forests.
The leading worldwide standard for organic fibers, covering ecological and social criteria.
Certifies products designed for circularity — material health, reuse, renewable energy, water and social fairness.
A brand or product whose climate impact is balanced by offsets — credible only with verified, additional offsets.
Marketing a product or company as more environmentally responsible than it actually is.
An economic model where products and materials are reused, repaired, refurbished or recycled — minimizing waste.
Plastic particles smaller than 5mm — released by synthetic fabrics, tires, packaging breakdown and personal care.
Independent multi-stakeholder initiative auditing apparel brand factories for labor practices.
Capable of being broken down by microorganisms into natural substances — but conditions and timeframes vary widely.
Net-zero carbon emissions achieved by reducing and offsetting equivalent CO₂.
Reducing emissions by ~90% then offsetting only the unavoidable residual.
Indirect emissions across the value chain — usually a company's largest footprint.
Farming practices that rebuild soil health, biodiversity and watersheds.
A wage sufficient to meet a worker's basic needs in their location.
Public disclosure of suppliers, facilities and conditions across every production tier.
The strictest globally recognised cruelty-free certification.
The leading textile processing standard for organic fibres, covering ecology and labour.
Tests textiles for harmful substances at every production stage.
Multi-stakeholder certification for palm oil produced without deforestation.
Certifies wild-caught seafood from sustainably managed fisheries.
Personal-care products that meet the Environmental Working Group's transparency and ingredient-safety criteria.
The most widely used green-building certification system, run by USGBC.
UN body that publishes the authoritative scientific assessment of climate change.
A tradable credit representing one tonne of CO₂ reduced, avoided or removed.
Most ethical shopping mistakes are vocabulary mistakes. Shoppers reasonably assume 'biodegradable' means the packaging disappears harmlessly and 'carbon neutral' means no emissions were produced. In practice, biodegradable often needs industrial composting that most UK councils do not offer, and carbon neutral usually describes offsets purchased after the fact.
Knowing which terms are legally defined and which are pure marketing is the fastest upgrade to your shopping. It costs nothing and it protects you from paying a premium for language.
Greenwashing rarely lies outright. It selects a true but tiny fact and presents it as the whole story — a bottle that is '100% recyclable' but shipped in mixed plastic, or a range that is 'made with organic ingredients' where organic content is 2%.
The reliable tell is specificity. Genuine claims come with numbers, scopes and dates. Vague claims come with imagery.
| Term | Plain-English meaning | UK regulated? | Trust level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Organic (food) | Grown to certified organic farming standards | Yes | High |
| Fairtrade | Certified minimum price and producer premium | Yes (trademark) | High |
| Recyclable | Can be recycled somewhere, not necessarily by your council | Partly | Medium |
| Biodegradable | Breaks down eventually, often only industrially | No | Low |
| Carbon neutral | Emissions offset rather than avoided | No | Low |
| Plant-based | Mostly or entirely plant ingredients; not audited | No | Low |
| Cruelty-free | No animal testing — only meaningful with Leaping Bunny | No | Low without a mark |
Greenwashing is presenting a product or company as more environmentally responsible than the evidence supports, usually by highlighting one narrow true fact while omitting the rest. In the UK it is addressed by the CMA's Green Claims Code, which requires claims to be accurate, complete and substantiated.
No. Plant-based is a marketing description with no legal definition or audit, and plant-based products can still contain traces of animal-derived ingredients or processing aids. Certified vegan marks, such as The Vegan Society trademark, are verified against a published standard.
No. It almost always means emissions were produced and then offset by buying credits, often from forestry or renewable projects of varying quality. Look instead for brands publishing absolute emissions reductions with a verified target, such as through the Science Based Targets initiative.
Not always. Recyclability depends on your local authority's kerbside collection, and materials such as flexible plastic film, black plastic and mixed-material cartons are widely rejected. Check your council's list before assuming a package will be recycled.