The ethical accreditation guide
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The world of ethical accreditation can often seem like a confusing landscape. In a diverse business environment where there is more pressure than ever to demonstrate that a company is walking the talk on ethics, there are more badges available to a green business than there is to a cub scout. However, what do all of the badges that are available to energy suppliers actually mean? Which are the ones you should look out for? And what accreditation is out there for the wider business community?
Which? Eco Provider
In 2021, consumer champions Which? felt it was important for consumers to understand what companies are really doing behind the scenes to increase renewable energy in the UK, so they introduced Which? Eco Provider status for energy companies. In their latest 2025 review, Which? analysed the following criteria:
Buying and selling renewable power: This looked at if suppliers supply 100% renewable electricity and buy renewable power directly from generators through PPAs or similar contract arrangements.
Generating renewable power: Points were awarded to suppliers that generate renewable electricity.
Fossil fuel links: Which? deducted points for generating electricity from fossil fuels or buying directly from fossil fuel generators.
Green gas: A point was given for selling green gas, with another added if it made up more than 5% of gas sold.
Time of use (TOU) products and SEG (Smart Export Guarantee) tariffs: Firms received points if they offered one or more ToU tariffs.
Low carbon installations: Suppliers earned points for providing customers with ways to reduce the carbon footprint of their home by installing green technology.
Greenhouse gas emissions: Which? looked at the scope 1 and 2 (location-based emissions) of suppliers and whether they were able to provide scope 3 emissions data.
Ecotricity and Which?
In the latest review, Which? only awarded three suppliers with the Eco Provider status. We were honoured to be awarded this accolade for the fifth year running, meaning we have achieved this status every year since it was introduced.
ISO standards
The International Organization for Standardisation has for decades had a certification scheme, which recognises institutions that have met a certain standard of their product and service. Over a million businesses across the world have achieved one of their various types of certification, which range from ISO 27001 (covering data protection and cybersecurity) to ISO 9001 (for quality of products), giving standardisation in these areas.
One of the key certificates for green business is ISO 14001 for environmental management. This was introduced in 2015 to give businesses a framework for benchmarking and continually improving their environmental performance. Businesses that have achieved this standard get the dual benefits of taking proactive green steps, while also showing customers and partners that they take sustainability seriously enough to achieve international certification – and we consider this certification to be an important way to showcase our way of doing things.
Ecotricity and ISO 14001
We believe ISO14001 certification sets an important international standard for environmental best practice. So we have had this certification since 2020.
Vegan certification
Livestock farming is one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions in the UK and around the world. In total, agriculture and deforestation are responsible for a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions – and animal farming is responsible for 60% of the emissions from agriculture. Energy companies who use animals to make energy are supporting the factory farming industry, which is a huge problem for the climate.
It’s hard to imagine using animals to generate energy, but it happens. For example, manure from factory farms is burned as biomass or used in anaerobic digestion vats to produce biomethane. Animals are exploited to produce a small proportion of the UK’s energy, but it gets into the mix for a much larger proportion of homes. Several of the big energy suppliers and so-called green energy companies have animal waste in their fuel mix.
Ecotricity & Vegan Energy
We thought it would be a better thing for the planet we so cherish if animals weren’t used to generate energy. That’s why we reviewed all our energy sources and eliminated anything involving animals making us the only energy company in the world certified as vegan by both the Vegan Society and Viva!, the vegan charity.
Beyond energy
If we look beyond the world of energy suppliers, there are many cross-industry standards that businesses can achieve to demonstrate their ethical credentials. For example, the GreenCode standard made its name in the world of sport but is now adopted by members across multiple industries. Plus A Greener Future (AGF) has spent the past 20 years offering certification opportunities for live events and stadia across the world to showcase their green credentials.
Meanwhile, thousands of businesses across the world have achieved B Corp status, which demonstrates high standards in social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. B Corp was created for profit-driven corporations that are wanting to balance profit with impact. However, because of our not-for-dividend model, it's less appropriate for us.
And what about Customer Service?
Meanwhile, you can also tell a lot about a business from how they treat their customers. In the energy sector, a key indicator of this is the Citizens Advice Bureau, which rates energy suppliers on how many complaints they receive, contact waiting time and commitment to other standards.
For the latest quarter, we were very pleased to see our customer-facing teams recognised with us coming out as the top domestic supplier and 2nd best business supplier. For us, this shows that care for the world and people is instilled in every part of how we do things as an organisation.
Any badges out there for recognising businesses that reinvest their profits back into the green economy?
These badges are all important ways for businesses to demonstrate their sustainability credentials. However, there are some other key indicators of best business practice.
For example, who are the shareholders in a business? And what else are they investing in? Because that’s where the profits of business are ultimately going. We’re personally pretty proud of how we perform here as we have been not-for-dividend since we were founded over 30 years ago, with all our excess profits funding green projects right here in Britain, building the green infrastructure that will give the country energy independence.
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