British spending on ethically produced food will reach £2bn by the end of the year, research suggests.

Sales of Fairtrade, organic and free-range food products have grown by more than 60 per cent in the last four years, according to analyst firm Mintel, who carried out the research.

"People in Britain today are clearly moving towards more ethical lifestyles and are starting to realise that their actions all have consequences," Mintel said in their report.

The survey of 1,007 consumers revealed that three-quarters said that they believed it was their "duty" to recycle, up from 65 per cent in 2002.

The firm's research also found that nearly one third of people buy Fairtrade "where available" and 40 per cent buy free-range "whenever they can".

Mintel said there were around 70 ethical food products launched in the UK last year, compared with 25 in 2002.

"Ethical food suppliers have traded on the fringes of the UK grocery market for many years and until recently only a few sectors, such as free-range eggs, had really established themselves," said Julie Sloan, Mintel's senior market analyst.

"But now many more ethical products have entered the mainstream-foods sector, with leading suppliers and retailers becoming increasingly involved."

Fairtrade is the star performer of the ethical foods market, with sales expected to reach £230m by the end of 2006.

And Mintel predicts that Fairtrade will see a further 138 per cent growth over the next five years, with sales hitting nearly £550m by 2011.

Fairtrade Foundation's Barbara Crowther said: "Mintel's latest insights confirm what the Fairtrade Foundation is experiencing on a daily basis - rapidly growing consumer and business interest in Fairtrade and wider ethical food shopping.

"This shows no signs of abating, and is also moving beyond the food sector for us now.

"The challenge now is to consolidate long term Fairtrade commitments as part of mainstream consumer and business behaviour, in order to bring about tangible and sustainable change for millions more producers in developing countries."