Corporate Research Database

In 2024 we began making some important changes to improve our ethical scoring system. For a long time we have scored companies out of 15. A company started with a score of 15 and marks were deducted for problematic policy or practice.

We are now moving to a scoring system out of 100. Companies will start with a score of 0 and points will be gained for good policy/practice, or taken away for bad policy/practice or for third-party criticisms.

This new scoring system will be clearer and allows for greater nuance. As before, our research will remain transparent so you will be able to see exactly why we have given a company its score in each category.

All the companies currently on the database will remain there, but from 2024 we will begin to update them using our new system. Until we have conducted all these updates, we have decided for simplicity of communication to make all the total scores out of 100, even if a company has not yet been updated using our new methodology. For example, if a company scored 3/15 in the old system, we will show its proportional score out of 100. In this case it would be 20/100. 

Our Database

Our Corporate Research Database is a unique resource that contains over 25 years of high quality, stress-tested research, compiled by the independent, not-for-profit co-operative Ethical Consumer Research Association.

The database contains information on over 2,500 companies and brands, including data on their environmental reporting, supply chain management, animal testing policies and much more.

We track company practice as well as company policy, through monitoring news and business media as well as campaign group sources from around the world. Read more about how we conduct our research >

The records are regularly updated by our team of highly qualified researchers, who specialise in a range of topics

Unlike most business databases, we rely on the accuracy of our data for regular publication (in Ethical Consumer print magazine and consumer website).

How it works

Once you subscribe, you are able to use the search tools to easily search for the records of suppliers, sponsors, contractors and competitors.

• View corporate structure, ownership data and related brands.
• View an organisation’s overall ethical rating from 0 to 15.
• View individual stories with referenced and dated sources for ethical issues relating to a company.

Company search 

The 'Company Search' function allows you to search for a specific company, organisation or brand. For example, searching for ‘Apple Inc’ will bring up information about the company, along with all the research and analysis Ethical Consumer has conducted relating to this company. See screenshot below:

Full list of companies

You can also search or browse for companies in our database using our new A to Z full list of companies. 

You can browse by letter or search for a specific company. See screenshot below for an example from 'H'

You can find this browse/search function under the Corporate Research Database menu at the top of the page.

Export company data

It is also possible to export company data at the click of a button. This will export a company’s data and create a report which can be saved to your computer as a word file.

Screenshot of Microsoft profile with the export button circled. 

Story Search

Story Search allows you to search for a specific topic or issue. For example, searching for ‘palm oil’ would bring up all stories and analyses relating to palm oil.

You can also find the stories associated with a particular company from their company profile page. For example, here are some of the ethical stories that you will see if you look at Microsoft Corporation:

Differences between the Corporate Research Database and our consumer site

There are some differences between the Corporate Research Database on this site, and our consumer site

• The Corporate Research Database contains many more companies than the consumer site. The companies that feature on the consumer site are only those that have been researched for our ‘shopping guides’. The Corporate Research Database contains all these companies, plus all those that have been researched as part of our corporate screenings service.
• The Corporate Research Database allows you to export a company’s data into a ready-made document template.
• The consumer site is aimed at consumers, which the Corporate Research Database is primarily aimed at NGOs, charities, businesses, and academics.
• The Corporate Research Database contains historic data that is older than five years old.
   

Pricing

We offer different rates depending on whether the subscription is for a commercial business or a not-for-profit / academic institution.

We also offer discounts depending on the size of your institution.

Commercial

• 3 months: £500 (+VAT)
• 12 months: £1200 (+VAT)

Academic / Not-for-Profit / Co-operative

• 3 months: £360 (+VAT)
• 12 months: £850 (+VAT)

Discounts according to size of institution

If your organisation has an annual turnover of under £10.2m a discounted rate is available:

• Under £5m: 10% discount
• Between £5m-£10.2m: 5% discount

Subscribe today to gain full access to data on over 25,000 companies, brands and organisations, from multinational corporations to small independent co-operatives.

To find out more, to request a free demonstration or to subscribe, please email database@ethicalconsumer.org, or telephone Alex Crumbie on +44 (0)161 226 2929.