September favourites cruelty-free, organic and ethical

Never will you find a stranger list of favourites than these! Unfortunately, I've not had a very beauty-full month so this time most of my favourites will be food. My first favourite this month is this amazing organic coffee by Clipper. I searched high and low for an organic Fair-trade coffee this month, but the closest I could get is the Organic Morrisons own brand filer coffee. I had a look in Tesco, Morrisons, Lidl and Aldi and this was the only one I found. I then had a look in Sainsbury's when I went in to grab some lentil pasta and I found this one by Clipper. I think its really sad that Sainsbury's are moving away from their partnership with Fair-trade, and from a marketing point of view I think the decision is poor. it will really affect my decision to shop there, I only go in for the Fair-trade and organic items!

This coffee had to be on my favourites list as not only is it organic and fair-trade, but it has a really good deep flavour as well. if you don't like strong coffee this one is not for you, it is quite bitter and strong which I like. It is also Soil Association certified which is a really important symbol to look for in your shopping basket. Soil erosion is one of the biggest and most overlooked environmental problems on earth.. but I'll save that for another post... This coffee is on the pricey side but I'm happy to pay for a quality instant coffee, and I would rather pay an extra pound to know that the coffee is organic, free from pesticides, herbicides and slave/child labour.

I really don't like the way that people ignore the importance of fair-trade, and are happy for big companies to use slaves and child labour as long as they don't have to hear about it. Slave labour and child labour are huge issues still in the world today with an estimated 46 million people still living as slaves worldwide.

The recent controversy between Munroe Bergdorf and L'Oréal really highlighted this issue for me. In the controversial statement she made, she spoke about how Britain and white society generally is built on and has profited from, the use of slaves. These comments highlighted to me how disillusioned many people can be about the status of slavery, and how countries and people have benefited and continue to benefit. L'Oréal who signed a contract with Munroe, is part-owned by Nestle who use slave labour on there cocoa and coffee plantations and have admitted this on their website. People need to recognise that if you work with people who still use slave labour, if you take their money or if you use their products you are still funding slavery. I personally feel that when Munroe made this statement, someone should have pointed out the hypocrisy in making this statement and forming a partnership with L'Oréal. I think there is an issue with people not seeing the link between how the products that we buy fund most of the social, economic, political and environmental problems in the world. Just changing our choices when we are shopping can actually change the world. Who knew it was that simple!

My next favourite is Sleepy by Lush which I know quite a few people have been loving recently. It is definitely not overhyped and it is as good as people say. I have been loving this product all month and I don't want to admit it but it is a little nicer than the Charity Pot. If you have trouble sleeping this is for you!

My last favourite is this Pip & Nut peanut butter, which I have been loving adding to rice cakes and porridge. It has no palm oil and has been sweetened with maples syrup and coconut oil, which adds a little bit of a sweet, malty flavour to it. I love peanut butter and with 26g of protein per 100g, it adds a little protein kick to my snacks. If you are trying to build muscles or get fit on a plant-based or vegetarian diet this can be a good form of protein and good fats.

Hope everyone enjoyed my ranty, political September favourites ;)