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Ethical brand ratings and accreditation since 2001

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Old Spice

How ethical is Old Spice?

Old Spice is a brand of soap and shower products which has a below-benchmark score on The Good Shopping Guide’s Ethical Soap & Shower Gel Ratings Table. Although Old Spice has not yet met our ethical benchmark, we hope to see the brand make progress in the future.

We would have extra confidence in Old Spice if it submitted itself to apply for Ethical Accreditation, whereby The Good Shopping Guide would make further detailed assessment and recommendations for ethical improvement.

Find out more about the ethical issues facing the Ethical Soap & Shower Gel sector.

What does Old Spice do?

Old Spice is an American brand of male grooming products including soaps, deodorants and shampoo. It was launched in 1937 and was originally aimed at women. Old Spice is now owned by Procter & Gamble.

In which areas does Old Spice perform poorly?

On its website, The Procter and Gamble Company has a section titled Structure and Governance. The page includes information about its political involvement and lobbying activity. As its donations are above our threshold, Old Spice gets a bottom rating for Political Donations. Old Spice was marked down under our criteria for Animal Welfare as the brand’s parent company, Procter & Gamble, confirms that it does test on animals when required by law.

Old Spice was also marked down under our criteria for Organic products and Vegetarian/Vegan products due to a lack of certification, and for Fossil Fuels as Procter & Gamble owns several fossil fuel plants. It also gets a bottom rating for Irresponsible Marketing due to ongoing lawsuits relating to allegations of carcinogenic contaminants in its Old Spice antiperspirant sprays. Find out more about how we rate by exploring our ethical criteria.

Past Criticisms of Old Spice’s record

Procter & Gamble has been named as one of the companies sourcing palm oil from suppliers allegedly controlled by the Harita Group, responsible for ongoing destruction of forests and indigenous communities in Borneo. Procter & Gamble also scored Ethical Consumer’s worst rating for its use of palm oil.

In which areas does Old Spice score well for its ethics?

Old Spice receives a high score for its Environmental Report, as Procter and Gamble has an Environmental Sustainability page on its website which contains information and targets for the environmental topics of water, climate, packaging and forestry.

We found no criticisms relating to GM, Nuclear Power or Armaments so Old Spice scores well for these criteria.

How can Old Spice improve its ethical rating?

The below-benchmark score that Old Spice is awarded with on The Good Shopping Guide’s Ethical Soap & Shower Gel Ratings Table is the result of an evaluation of multiple ethical criteria.

To reach our minimum ethical benchmark and qualify for Ethical Accreditation, Old Spice has some issues to resolve, including its use of animal testing and fossil fuels. If it applies for Ethical Accreditation, The Good Shopping Guide will be able to give Old Spice some guidance to improve on these areas.

Were you aware that your brand could benefit from Ethical Accreditation? Brands accredited by The Good Shopping Guide can display our ethical mark, showcasing to consumers that it is an ethical and sustainable brand. If you’re interested in learning more, please contact us or complete a Free Initial Assessment form.

Ethical performance in category

0

GSG score

25
67

GSG category benchmark

100

Ethical Rating

Environment

  • Environmental Report

    Good

  • Genetic Modification

    Good

  • Organic

    Poor

  • Nuclear Power

    Good

  • Fossil Fuels

    Poor

Animal

  • Animal Welfare

    Poor

  • Vegetarian/Vegan Verified

    Poor

People

  • Armaments

    Good

  • Irresponsible Marketing

    Poor

  • Political Donations

    Poor

Other

  • Ethical Accreditation

    Poor

  • Public Record Criticisms

    Poor

  • Public Record Criticisms+

    Poor

= GSG Top Rating = GSG Middle Rating = GSG Bottom Rating