We all eat – Duh! But what do we consider acceptable to eat? Every indivual has his or her unique likes and dislikes. In addition, our eating habits are affected by culture, religion, economic circumstances and where we live.

Or perhaps what we choose to eat goes merely in passing phases, as my grandmother still keeps telling herself about my vegetarianism. It has only been 12 years since I stopped eating meat, and no Nana, I still won’t eat even ”a little bit of ham.” We are often quick to criticise what others eat, but how do we define what is acceptable?

Browsing the websites of Finland’s finest companies, one gets the impression that they all respect the environment, care deeply about human rights and generally spend a lot of time helping old ladies cross roads and assisting kittens out of trees. What surprises me about these clean, green images is not that companies are adapting themselves to a changing and more aware trading environment, but that they put so little effort into even pretending that the claims are true.

One of the two major supermarket chains claims to be committed to Fair Trade products. And yet my local outlet stocks 40 different kinds of juice – not one of which is Fair Trade. The competing chain stocks 80 different kinds of juice – of which a single one is Fair Trade. If that is commitment, I can’t imagine what indifference looks like.