The Co-operative Group has been voted the most ethical company in the UK over the last 25 years by the readers of Ethical Consumer magazine.
The results of the survey were regarded by some as surprising because of the group's capital shortfall. Furthermore, scandal surrounding Paul Flowers, its former chairman, who pleaded guilty to the charge of possessing cocaine in May, hurt the company's image.
Ethical Consumer co-director Tim Hunt said, "Many commentators have had their knives out for the Co-op Group in recent months. Ethical Consumer's readers, however, are able to see through the spin and realise that despite the problems, the Co-op remains an ethical business at heart – at least for the time being."
The Co-op Group is navigating choppy waters after revealing losses of £2.5 billion in the year ending April 2014. In order to generate capital, it has sold its farms business to the Wellcome Trust for £249 million. This has caused controversy, as some critics fear that it will end more than 100 years of ethical farming by the firm.
Peter Pereira Gray, managing director of investments at the Wellcome Trust, said, "The Co-operative has its own form of ethics. We wouldn't necessarily seek to be exactly replicating theirs. We have our own very high standards."
© 2014 European Supermarket Magazine by Peter Donnelly
To sign up to ESM’s weekly e-zine newsletter, send an email with the subject ‘Subscribe ESM news’ to peter@esmmagazine.com.
