Here’s a question that keeps bouncing around my mind and refuses to let up.
Can we ever truly feel at peace buying vegan products from companies whose wider business practices feel completely at odds with the compassionate ethos we are trying to live by?
Read more below.
I considered this question again the other day while walking past the freezer aisle. Nestled between the usual suspects was a familiar sight from the early days of my vegan life.
Swedish Glace. That tub of vanilla comfort was once a staple in my home. It was creamy. It was dependable. It was, for many of us, the first vegan ice cream we ever tasted that didn’t taste like frozen disappointment.
But I haven’t bought Swedish Glace in years. Unilever bought them out back in 2012 and that name Unilever carries a lot of negative weight that has put a dampener on my love for this product.
This is a corporation that has faced boycott calls for continuing to operate in Russia even after the invasion of Ukraine. A company that’s been linked to sexual abuse allegations in its Kenyan tea supply chains. An empire that sells 1700 plastic sachets every single second according to Greenpeace. Their tax practices have been questioned. Their CEO salaries are eye-watering. They don’t score well when it comes to animal welfare either.
Sure, they’ve made some climate goals and issued the usual press statements about being shocked and saddened, but when you keep seeing headline after headline about the damage they’re doing to people and planet, it’s hard to reconcile that with the joy of a scoop of dairy-free vanilla.
It feels like this is the impossible question for modern vegans. Do we buy the products that might technically tick the plant-based box, even when the profits line the pockets of companies doing so much harm elsewhere?
Swedish Glace isn’t alone. You’d be hard-pressed to find a supermarket plant-based aisle that isn’t filled with offerings from companies whose main business model is still meat, dairy, or some other form of exploitation. Many of us have bought vegan mayo from brands that also sell chicken nuggets. We buy oat milk from multinational food giants. And let’s be honest, some of that stuff tastes great and makes being vegan more accessible for more people.
But it still leaves a bitter aftertaste, doesn’t it?
I don’t have a neat answer. Sometimes convenience wins. Sometimes cost wins. Sometimes we’re just tired and we want ice cream that’s already in the shop round the corner. I get it. I’ve been there. I might be there again.
But I keep wondering if there’s another way. Could we support small-scale, ethical vegan producers more? Could we spend our money in ways that align more closely with our values, even if it means giving up a few familiar favourites? Or is that just unrealistic in a world where capitalism makes it so hard to exist without compromise?
I’m not here to shame or preach. I’m just asking the question. Because the more we talk about it, the more we can begin to shift things.
So tell me. How do you justify spending your vegan money with companies that might be doing the world more harm than good? Are you OK with it? Do you struggle with it? Or have you drawn your own line in the sand?
Let me know in the comments. I’m genuinely curious how others feel about this.
Read more about Unilever thanks to Ethical Consumer.
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Ha, I had the exact same thoughts yesterday. I wanted some vegan ice cream, but the only option in the freezer in that shop was Swedish Glace. I left without it. Compromised brands like this are, unfortunately, to be avoided. The brand owner will only have seen a successful brand and bought it for that reason. While it’s great that Swedish Glace was successful, it’s no approbation that it then becomes part of an awful company like that.
I generally buy vegan products from smaller mainstream companies once or twice to satisfy my curiosity, but I find the best ones are usually from smaller, often new companies that clearly care about the product, are probably not *that* profitable, and that have a good feel about them.
I agree that it is best to buy from completely vegan companies whenever possible. But I justify buying vegan products from non-vegan companies by hoping that if they realize they can make as much money from vegan products, they will stop selling non-vegan ones. Also, while it is easy for those of us living in large cities to have a choice, for people living in more isolated areas, it might only be the large companies who provide vegan options, so I don’t want them to discontinue those products, for the benefit of vegans and aspiring vegans who have less to choose from.