"Ethical shopping really means less consumption. On a global level 20 percent of the population does 86 percent of all the shopping. Consumption is the prevalent style of life in the late capitalism. The fact however is that we only have one plant, and that the natural resources we have are not endless. What will we leave to our descendants," asks Marjeta Benčina from the association for natural development, Focus.

Ethical consumption is not the reckless buying of organic products
"It has been proved that ethical consumption is cheap, and that you can save up a lot with such a lifestyle. When you find out what really makes you happy and how little you need to live a decent life, and when you stop taking into account the comments made in your surrounding and the advertisements which bomb you from all sides, you quickly realize that you actually need very little," says Benčina and adds that the first step to ethical consumption is non-consumption. Only then, once all other possibilities have been exhausted, forms of exchange, borrowing, joint usage, reuse and recycling enter the picture, and "we begin shopping for organic, local, and fair products".

The quantity of products that one finds in the everyday shopping basket has increased under worrisome conditions. Benčina explains that while big chain stores manage to secure profits, suppliers work in conditions which are constantly deteriorating – small producers are being pushed out of business, many workers have no rights, they are underpaid, and there are also cases of child labour. The sellers aspirations for offering the lowest price very often lead to irresponsible production with regards to the environment and society. According to Benčina, we, who belong in the above-mentioned 20 percent of global shoppers, should become more aware of the ethical approach and demand an end to all the bad practices.