YOUR OWN PERSONAL SLAVES
by
Daniel Garcia
“Which of these products do you use? I wanted to do a piece about all the products we depend on, that are made or reaped by forced labor, child workers, sex slaves, etc.”
http://www.danielgarciaart.com/your-own-personal-slaves/
Below is a list of products people see everyday to boycott. Click on each name for more info. If you have any feedback, suggestions, or would like us to research a product to post please email responsibleconsumer1@gmail.com
Table of Contents
Reducing before Buying
Agriculture and Food Products
Non-Edible Products
Food Businesses
Businesses
Banks
Oil and Gas
Clothing Companies
Trump-Supporting Companies
Buy Less, Use More
Certifications to Look for While Shopping
Reducing before Buying
—
Things to Buy Less of While Responsibly Reusing and Recycling more
—
Agriculture and Food Products
Products to Boycott
Production Involves Cruelty
- Animal Agriculture
- Overview on Environmental Impact of Animal Agriculture
- Boycott Canadian Seafood to Help Baby Seals (for Chefs, restaurants, and businesses)
Alternatives to Factory Farming & Animal Agriculture
Production Involves Child Labor
- Ivory Coast and Ghana Cocoa/Chocolate
- Nestle, Hershey, Mars, Kraft, Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland, ADM Cocoa, Godiva, Fowler’s Chocolate
- Madagascar Vanilla
Production Involves Slave Labor
- Brazilian Coffee
- Nescafé, Nespresso, Dolce Gusto, Coffee-mate and Senseo
- Haribo Gummy Bears
- Palm Oil
- Thailand Shrimp
Production Involves Unfair Labor Practices
- Cut Flowers (flowers not grown by fair trade or local growers)
- Driscolls Berries
- Free Trade vs Fair Trade Bananas
- Miller Coors
- Nabisco (Check label and only buy “Made in America”)
Production Involves Environmental or Health Degradation
- Aurora Dairy (name brand organic milk at Walmart, Costco and Target)
- Bottle Water
- Canned Tuna: The Best and Worst Ranked, Based on Sustainability
- Constellation Brands
- Consumer Guides to Sustainable Seafood
- Nano Particles in Baby Formula
- Nestle Water Grab
- Nestle Baby Formula
- Overview on Environmental Impact of Animal Agriculture
- Palm Oil
- Products to Boycott to Oppose GMOs
- 4 Questions Before You Buy Pink (products supporting cancer campaigns)
Companies Involved with Multiple Issues
Products to Promote
- Alternatives to Factory Farming & Animal Agriculture
- Ben and Jerry’s Icecream (Fair Trade Ingredients)
- Canned Tuna: The Best and Worst Ranked, Based on Sustainability
- Chobani Yogurt
- Consumer Guides to Sustainable Seafood
Fair Trade Products
(Order these products online or look for them at your local grocery)
- Free Trade vs Fair Trade Bananas
- Fair Trade Chocolate
- Fair Trade Coffee
- Fair Trade Fruits and Vegetables
- Fair Trade Herbs and Spices
- Fair Trade Honey
- Fair Trade Nuts and Oilseeds
- Fair Trade Packaged Food
- Fair Trade Rice
- Fair Trade Sugar
- Fair Trade Tea
- Fair Trade Vanilla
- Fair Trade Wine
Fake Olive Oil Brands vs Real Olive Oil Brands
Saltwater Brewery and their Sea Creature Safe Edible Six-Pack Rings
Understanding “Humane” Certification Labels in Animal Agriculture– FYI “Animal Welfare Approved” is the most humane certification!
Understanding “Humane” Egg Labels
– FYI “Pasture Raise” Eggs are the most humane label!
Non-Edible Products
Products to Boycott
Animal Cruelty Products
Animal Skin Clothes and Accessories
- Angora Wool (Rabbit)
- Down Industry
- Fur Trade
- Urge Backcountry.com to stop selling angora wool and fur
- Boycott Canadian Seafood to Help Baby Seals (for Chefs, restaurants, and businesses)
- Ivory (Elephant Tusks) Products
- Leather Products
- Wool and Sheep Skin
Production Involves Slave Labor
- Blood Diamonds vs Canadian Diamonds
- Conflict Minerals in Cellphones, Computers, and Cars
- Daewoo Cotton (Uzeb Slave Labor Cotton Industry)
- Companies that use Prison Slave Labor
- Overview of Prison Slave Labor
- Samsung Products
Toxic Products
- Conventional Burials
- De-Icers (Use Magnesium chloride over sodium chloride)
- Microbeads
- Microfibers (Fleece, Nylon, Polyester, Spandex)
- Mind the Store: Ranking Retailers on Toxic Chemicals
- Plastic Toothbrushes
- Single Use Coffee Pods
- Straws
- Toxic Cosmetics
- Toxic Scented Candles
Products Involved in Supporting Oppression
Products that Support the “Pink or Women” Tax
(women pay on average 42% or $1351 more a year more than men for essentially the same products like personal care products, clothing, accessories healthcare products, etc)
Products to Promote
Non-Stuff Holiday/Celebration Gift Ideas
Cellphones
Eco-Friendly Cleaning and Personal Care Products
- Dr. Bronner’s
- Fair trade and organic all in one bath products
- Seventh Generation
- Plant based cleaning and household products
- Honest Co
- Non-toxic household products (Baby Focus)
- Tom’s of Maine
-
Natural and vegan personal care products
-
- Green America’s Green Pages:
Fair Trade Products
- Dr. Bronner’s Fair Trade Products
- Fair Trade Body Care
- Fair Trade Cotton
- Fair Trade Gold
- Fair Trade Flowers
- Fair Trade Sports Balls
Human and Animal Rights
Sustainability
- Bees Wax Wrap (Plastic Wrap Alternative)
- De-Icers (Use Magnesium chloride over sodium chloride)
- ECOBAGS (All natural material, plastic free produce and shopping bags)
- Giving Brush
- Green America’s Green Pages:
- Lunch Skins (Reusable, Plastic Free Lunch Bags)
- Menstrual Cups and Tampon Alternatives
- Mind the Store: Ranking Retailers on Toxic Chemicals
- Natural Burials
- Single Use Coffee Pods Alternatives
Products that Support the “Pink or Women” Tax
(women pay on average 42% or $1351 more a year more than men for essentially the same products like personal care products, clothing, accessories healthcare products, etc)
- List of products that are cheaper (and essentially the same) in the men’s section
- Harry’s (gender-neutral shaving and skin care products)
- Boxed enforces price equality for women, on a per ounce or per unit basis for products that typically cost more for women than men such as razors, deodorants and many products. And no taxation for tampons!
Back to Top
Food Businesses
Businesses to Boycott
Businesses to Promote
Businesses
Businesses to Boycott
- Amazon.com
- Animal Entertainment
- Ethical and Non-Ethical Ways to Use Home Sharing Rental Platforms (Airbnb, etc)
- NFL
- Pet Stores and Puppy Mills
- SXSW
- Telsa
- Uber
Businesses to Promote
- Animal Adoption Shelters
- Ethical and Non-Ethical Ways to Use Home Sharing Rental Platforms (Airbnb, etc)
- Lyft
- National Thrift Store Directory
- Online Shopping Alternatives to Amazon
- TJX (TJ Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods)
– Protecting overtime pay
Banks
Banks to Boycott
Banks to Promote
Gas and Oil Industry
Boycott
Clothing Companies Using Sweat Shop Labor
Learn more about sweatshops and how to campaign against companies supporting sweatshops at Oxfam: Are your clothes made in sweatshops?
- Adidas
- Fila
- Forever 21
- GAP (including Old Navy and Banana Republic)
- H&M
- Nike
- Pacific Brands (Berlei, Bonds, Clarks, Dunlop, Slazenger and Volley)
- Primark
- Puma
- The Just Group
- Uniqlo
- Urban Outfitters
- Victoria’s Secret
- Wal-Mart
- Zara
Check out the “True Cost” whole movie at Netflix or here.
Clothing and Jewelry
“There is no beauty in the finest cloth if it causes hunger and unhappiness.”
– Mahatma Gandhi
Companies that care about the Environment, Worker Rights & Fair Trade Markets
Click on each link to learn more about each companies practices
- Alternative Apparel
- Black Diamond
- Columbia
- Continental Clothing
- Eternal Creation
- Fair Indigo
- Patagonia
- People Tree
- Prana
- REI
- Timberland
- Under Armour
- 4-rth
- Green America’s Green Pages:
35 Fair Trade & Ethical Clothing Brands Betting Against Fast Fashion
Recommended Fair Trade Brands from True Cost Documentary
Look for the Fair Labor Association (FLA) Accreditation for companies working, at various stages, to improve worker standards.
*some companies like Nike, Adidas, Puma are making an effort to improve their past labor injustices through programs like FLA, but their success can be mixed.
Cruelty Free
- Click for a List of Vegan Clothes Brand
- Petite Mort Fur: Accidental Fur (Fur products made from roadkill)
Cultural Promotion
- Afrikrea
Black “Etsy” to connect consumers to African fashion designers
Clothes with a Cause
- BitterSweet Monthly
Collection of goods that support refugees as they resettle and begin again - SsekoDesigns
Sandals handcrafted in Uganda and every pair helps to send a bright & brave young woman to university.
Survivor Made Goods
Clothes & Jewelry made by artisans around the world that have overcome abuse, conflict, or disease
- Free Set Global
Bags, t-shirts, scarves, and accessories by social enterprises focused on creating positive employment opportunities for women affected by sex trafficking in West Bengal, India. - Made by Survivors
Artisan jewelry made by survivors of human trafficking and extreme abuse. Organizations also helps provide shelter, education, and employment. - Sudara
Wide variety of clothes for men, women, and children made by women in India who have escaped a life of sex trafficking and exploitation. - To the Market
Curated goods such as raw materials, jewelry, home goods, scarves, shoes, and apparel, from around the world that empowers vulnerable communities. - 31-Bits
Jewelry line created by war displaced women in Northern Uganda
Clothes Made From New Eco Friendly Products
- Veja
Sustainable shoes made with Amazon Wild Rubber - Wearpanda
Glasses are made from Mosu bamboo and watches made from bamboo, recycled metals, vegan leather and Portuguese cork.
Clothes with Natural Dyes
- Boll and Branch
New Jersey-based which sells organic-cotton bedsheets, blankets and towels - Industry of All Nations
Los Angeles based clothes are made with natural dyes and fibers from around the world - Jungmaven
Los Angeles based hemp and organic-cotton T-shirt company - PACT
Colorado-based underwear and loungewear from all-organic cotton
Reuse & Repurpose
- Alchemy Goods
Making wallets, belts, and bags using old bicycle inner tubes - Couch Guitar Straps
Vegan straps, belts and wallets made from recycled materials such as vinyl car seats - National Thrift Store Directory
Find the closest thrift, consignment, vintage, charity resale, secondhand, & vintage Stores - Patagonia Recycled Products
Outdoor products man from recycled wool, down, cotton and other materials - Buy or Sell Used Wedding Clothes
- Website full of sites to buy used wedding clothes, recycled wedding clothes and sell your old wedding clothes
- Two Thirds
Clothes made fully or partially from recycled polyester materials like plastic bottles
Keep up to date with new sustainable fashion designers at Ecouterre
Companies that Supported Trump
- ABC Supply
- Firestone Beer
- Forbes
- Kushner Properties
- Hobby Lobby
- L.L. Bean
- Miller Coors
- National Enquirer
- New Balance
- Uline
- Yuengling
For a list of companies that sell Trump products click here.
Things to Buy Less of While Responsibly Reusing and Recycling more
Certifications to look for with standards that require environmental, social, and economic sustainability
RSPO Certified Sustainable Palm Oil – Why?
Guide to Fair Trade logos – Why?
Fair Labor Association Certification to guarantee no child labor & inhumane working conditions
Sustainable Farming Certification for coffee, cocoa, and tea – Why?
B Corps are for-profit companies certified by the nonprofit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social, environmental, accountability, and transparency.
Good Weave Child Free Labor Certification for rugs.
Certifications for animal cruelty free products – Why?
Humane Treatment of Farm Animals Certifications – why?
Certifications that have humane animal standards – Why?
Ethical Standards for Down Products. Why?
Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) Certification that checks environmental and social conditions for marine farming. Why?
Assures cosmetics and personal care products are plastic free
Assures products are biodegradable (compostable)
Assures products are recyclable
Independent public health and safety certification
Non GMO Project certification for GMO free products- Why?
USDA Organic vs Certified Naturally Grown 
Both certifications have the same standards. “USDA Organic” certification cost much more so mainly medium to large farms sign up. “Certified Naturally Grown” cost much less and gives more small, local farms a chance.
*Beware of the label “natural” which does not guarantee natural or organic ingredients.
vs 
Although programs like the Kimberly Process has helped reduce conflict diamonds, and is better than buying diamonds with no certifications, these programs cannot 100% guarantee they are not conflict diamonds and often fail to raise living standards or promote economic justice. The Canadian Diamond Certificate program uses a laser “track and trace” model that can 100% prove their strict code of conflict is enforced and is the only way to 100% guarantee not to buy conflict diamonds.
The Responsible Consumer 