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Grocery Outlet ethical bargains

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Ethical Finds at the Grocery Outlet

This site focuses on finding ethical products at affordable prices and is a sister site to the Green Stars Project. I’ve chosen the Grocery Outlet (which is not affiliated with this site) as inventory constantly changes and stores often stock new ethical products. As we face the challenges of climate change, habitat destruction, and inequality in the face of a pandemic-induced recession, it’s important that we all do what we can to save this planet. And, particularly for those hit hardest by the pandemic, that means ethical consumerism on a budget.

Latest from the Blog

Cascadian Farm cereal – ethical rating

In this post I’m taking a look at Cascadian Farm cereals, available on discount at the Grocery Outlet. One of them, an organic blueberry almond crunch granola, has no added sugar. From an ethical perspective, I’ll look at Cascadian Farm’s Love The Farmland program and General Mills ownership of the brand.

The No Meat Company – sausage rolls

The No Meat Company’s vegan sausage rolls – “No Porkies” – are a pretty good buy, in my opinion. Unlike many other sausage rolls, they contain no palm oil, and the packaging is a simple cardboard box – no plastic. 4.5 out of 5 Green Stars for social and environmental impact.

Beyond Good chocolate – review and ethical rating

Beyond Good is a chocolate company that aims to benefit cacao farmers in Madagascar and Uganda through direct trade purchasing and local manufacturing. I picked up a bar of their Uganda chocolate with crispy rice at the Grocery Outlet to try it out.

Simulate Nuggs – review & ethical rating

2 lb boxes of Simulate Nuggs are on sale for $10 at the Grocery Outlet. Almost indistinguishable from chicken nuggets in taste, but far superior in terms of sustainability and ethics.

Grocery Outlet wine sale, Nov 2-8, 2022

From November 2-8, 2022, the Grocery Outlet will be holding its biannual wine sale – all wine will be discounted a further 20%. My top pick: Château Lavabre La Closerie Pic Saint-Loup.

Sweet Earth Benevolent Bacon

I picked up my favorite vegan bacon, Sweet Earth’s Benevolent Bacon at the Grocery Outlet for $2 (normally around $5). Vegan, partly organic, fairly minimal packaging – 4.0 Green Stars.

Naturli’ vegan block – sustainability, review

Naturli’s Organic Vegan Block is a plant-based butter that tops my list of sustainable butters to buy in Ireland and across Europe. 4.5/5 Green Stars for social and environmental impact.

Lightlife tempeh strips – sustainability, review

I picked up some Lightlife Tempeh (smoky bacon strips) at the Grocery Outlet for $3 (normally around $5) and was surprised at how good it was. Organic, vegan, carbon neutral – 4.5 Green Stars.

JUST vegan egg bites – sustainability, review

JUST, the San Francisco plant-based food company mostly known for its vegan egg products has brought out a series of sous-vide vegan egg bites. 4.5 Green Stars for social and environmental impact.

Grocery Outlet wine sale, Spring 2022

From April 6-12, the Grocery Outlet will be holding its biannual wine sale – all wine will be discounted a further 20%. My top pick: Trois Moulins, 2018 – a Bordeaux blend from Chateau Lacaussade Saint-Martin.

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What is the Grocery Outlet?

The Grocery Outlet is a supermarket based mainly on the west coast of the US that specializes in food and wine bargains. The Grocery Outlet stocks food that would otherwise be in danger of being tossed out because of packaging changes, overstock, imperfections, or looming expiration dates. The Grocery Outlet business model reduces food waste, thus helping to mitigate critical environmental problems like habitat loss and climate change.

Ethical consumerism on a budget

Ethical consumerism is sometimes claimed to be only for the wealthy but that’s just not true. The central tenets of ethical consumerism are to reduce consumption, reuse or repurpose items whenever possible, repair rather than discard, and if something is really finished with, then recycle or compost if possible. All of these practices save, rather than cost money.

The products described here, on sale at the Grocery Outlet, are generally cheaper than their less-ethical counterparts. Many of the products reviewed here are available globally, or at least in many different stores across the US, so this site is not exclusively for people who shop at the Grocery Outlet.

The goal here is to review products and evaluate them ethically – scoring them from 0 to 5 Green Stars for social and environmental impact. It will involve the evaluation of new trends in the food tech industry and particularly in plant-based (vegan and vegetarian) food.

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