President

How ethical is President?

President is a brand of butter which has a below-benchmark score on The Good Shopping Guide’s Ethical Butter, Margarine & Spreads Ratings Table. Although President has not yet met our ethical benchmark, we hope to see the brand make progress in the future.

We would have extra confidence in President if it submitted itself 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 Butter, Margarine & Spreads sector.

What does President  do?

President is a dairy brand owned by Groupe Lactalis.

In which areas does President perform poorly?

We awarded a bottom rating to President for Animal Welfare, as Groupe Lactalis is rated amongst the worst performing companies in the 2020 Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare report. We also awarded a bottom rating for Political Donations, as Groupe Lactalis donated over our threshold amount in recent election cycles, and for our Vegetarian/Vegan criteria due to a lack of certification.

President gained a middle rating for its Environmental Report as its parent company. Groupe Lactalis, has published a fairly basic Sustainability Report 2022. It also receives a middle rating for our GM criterion, as it is not clear from its website whether GMOs are present in its food products. Find out more about how we rate by exploring our ethical criteria.

Past Criticisms of President’s record

In 2022, President parent company, Groupe Lactalis, was found guilty of breaching the mandatory Dairy Code of Conduct in Australian Federal Court and fined 950,000 AUD. Lactalis had breached the code by failing to publish its milk supply agreements on its website.

Prosecutors brought criminal charges against Groupe Lactalis in February 2023 for serious fraud, involuntary bodily harm, and a failure to carry out a recall order after several babies were diagnosed with salmonella caused by tainted powdered formula milk in 2017.

In which areas does President score well for its ethics?

We found no public record criticisms of President relating to Nuclear, Fossil Fuels, or Armaments, so it scores well for these criteria.

How can President improve its ethical rating?

The below-benchmark score that President is awarded with on The Good Shopping Guide’s Ethical Butter, Margarine & Spreads Ratings Table is the result of an evaluation of multiple ethical criteria.

To reach our minimum ethical benchmark and qualify for Ethical Accreditation, President has many issues to resolve, including its lack of Organic or Vegetarian certification, and poor Animal Welfare record. If it applies for Ethical Accreditation, The Good Shopping Guide will be able to give President 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.