This Week, Those Books

This Week, Those Books

Share this post

This Week, Those Books
This Week, Those Books
Nestle and the business of morality

Nestle and the business of morality

Rashmee Roshan Lall's avatar
Rashmee Roshan Lall
Apr 12, 2022
∙ Paid

Share this post

This Week, Those Books
This Week, Those Books
Nestle and the business of morality
Share
Photo by Sarah Dorweiler on Unsplash

The issue of ethics and business comes up a lot, with respect to the Ukraine war, Black Lives Matter, transgender rights and more.

When I was writing an openDemocracy piece on the subject, I found opinions deeply split on whether business can ever be moral, which is to say do the right thing, irrespective of profit or loss.

I asked people who study the issue and others who wrestle with it: Does the profit drive mean companies are fundamentally incapable of delivering real social justice or a healthy planet.

One professor of philosophy, who studies ethics in business said a nuanced answer was in order: “If we assume that ethics requires actions that are done purely for duty’s sake or because the ethical action is the right one to do, then for-profit businesses by nature cannot satisfy this demand. They will always be at least partly motivated by profit.” But he acknowledged that even “for-profit businesses can increase social welfare to some extent whil…

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to This Week, Those Books to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Rashmee Roshan Lall
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share