The majority of us enjoy shopping, whether it is shopping for ourselves, or purchasing gifts for others, and an increasing number of us would like to purchase goods which have minimal impact on our environment... and this is what this page is all about.

However, before you start shopping, check out the Ethiscore website who will give you an ethical scoring for the products you wish to buy, and advise you on which products and companies to best avoid!

Please read the disclosure at the bottom of this page before purchasing from any of the sites we have recommended.

Green Purchasing
Buying recycled products helps to: reduce the amount of materials going to landfill; stimulate markets for reclaimed materials; conserve energy and resources; create jobs; demonstrate commitment to good environmental practice ....... just to mention a few of the reasons why you should think twice before making a purchase..... now let's shop!

Buy Second Hand
Second hand shops are often a common feature of local high streets, and definitely worth a rummage through - also keep a look out for "nearly new" clothing shops, which normally take any of your good quality second hand clothing, and reimburse you part of the profit of the sale.

Other places include local newspapers and magazines, Oxfam furniture stores (who will also take your unwanted furniture free of charge) and last but not least, if you fancy a real rummage, try your local recycling depot, who often have a shed full of lots of useful bits and pieces at very reasonable prices!

Clothing
If you do not fancy second-hand clothes, then try Bishopston Trading Company for organic cotton ladies and children's wear or perhaps Gossypium who specialise in clothing for the whole family - for groovy kids... you must visit SuSuMama. And to finish off, with some gorgeous jewelry and accessories (as well as clothing) visit the People Tree. .

Food
Organic food can now be found in the majority of high street supermarkets, and as demand increases, so the prices are coming down.

Health food shops are an excellent source of organic produce, and often, for larger quantities, cheaper than your usual supermarket.

Veggie box schemes are an easy way to make sure that you always have fresh fruit and vegetables in your larder - try Sunnyfields Organics Farm, situated just inside the New Forest Heritage area which has been a fully fledged Soil Association Organic farm for the past 12 years. The farm grows over 60 different crops during the summer and winter and is now one of the leading producers and distributors of organic foods. They have a farm shop which is open week round or give them a call for a free list of their products (which also include free-range organic meats as well as household and personal products) - 023 8087 1408.

For further information on organic products, have a look at the Soil Association's website.

For food from around the world...have you tried, or heard of, Fair Trade products, which are available at Oxfam shops as well as on-line? A fantastic range of fair trade food, as gifts and household products, sourced from around the world.

Household Cleaning Products
Have you ever thought about where your washing-up liquid or the toilet cleaner goes after you have used it? Many products that we daily use are not biodegradable, and consequently end up in our freshwater courses. There is now a whole range of biodegradable products available on the market, however, they are often not easy to source as supermarkets are not too keen to promote them. Try Spirit of Nature for some natural household products.

For the Home
Oxfam sell Fair Trade products which been sourced in line with their ethical purchasing policy, which aims to ensure that decent minimum labour standards are met in the production of all their goods. And have you checked out their latest addition to the perfect gift? Oxfam Unwrapped!

Ganesha is a partnership formed by Jo Lawbuary and Purnendu Roy, with a shop on the South Bank. With an eye for the unusual, they import quality home furnishings and accessories from India, sourced from / developed with co-operatives and producer associations.

By Nature is an informational and shopping portal that offers a wide selection of organic and ethical products and brings inspiration for a green lifestyle in the 21st Century.

Garden Products
Gardening starts in the kitchen with your left-over food bits! Rather than thrown them straight into the bin, why not either pop them onto the compost heap, or better still, especially is you have room in your kitchen and kidz.... try a wormery! Need convincing?... then visit Wiggly Wigglers for everything from your traditional composting bin, to wormeries!, to gardening tools and treats for the wildlife.

Recycled Goods
Recycling household waste helps the environment by saving natural resources and reducing the amount of waste for disposal. There are lots of products with recycled content in everyday use in our homes and workplaces. Recycled products perform equally well to equivalent items made from raw materials. Check out Buy Recycled, which contains a vast amount of information on where you can source recycled products from.

Green Finance
Considered purchaising shares in a windfarm?

For Everything That You Could Possibly Need!
National Friends of the Earth for a full range of personal and household products.

Disclosure: please note that the websites on this page are just a few of the many that offer same or similar products or services. And we at Hampshire Friends of the Earth accept no responsibility for products or services purchased from the businesses mentioned on this website.