Are You Being Greenwashed?
Published April 5, 2022
You’ve finally made it to the store and you’re staring at the product from all those targeted ads. The oversized text on the nature-inspired label reads, “Hello, I’m good for the planet.” It’s fine to buy it, right? Well, sorry bestie, you might have just encountered a case of greenwashing.
Greenwashing is when a company markets itself as environmentally friendly based on misleading and unfounded claims. To prevent greenwashing attempts, The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a set of “Green Guides.” Although the FTC states that marketers should not make broad, unqualified general environmental benefit claims, “broad claims are difficult to substantiate, if not impossible.” Due to this lack of regulation, we continue to see companies use imagery and/or vague terms (such as green, eco-friendly, biodegradable, sustainable, etc.) that can be easily misinterpreted by the customer, especially without proof or a reliable third-party certification to support their claims.
🚩 One example is the term “natural.” Neither the FDA nor EPA have set criteria for products labeled as “natural.” As clearly stated on the FDA website, “the FDA has not engaged in rulemaking to establish a formal definition for the term ‘natural.’” The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) also states on their site that natural claims do not necessarily mean effective, side effect free, safe in large doses, or toxin free.
🚩 Occasionally, we will see irrelevant or confusing marketing such as labeling a trash bag "recyclable" when it most likely is destined for the landfill. Claims that a product is “biodegradable” or “compostable” can also result in the customer unknowingly disposing of products in counterproductive ways. See our previous post, “Biodegradable vs. Compostable,” to learn more.
Sources:
Environmental Protection Agency. Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Program Framework for the Assessment of Environmental Performance Standards and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing (Updated 2022). EPA. <https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-02/updated-framework_020222.pdf>
Environmental Protection Agency. Identifying Greener Cleaning Products. EPA. <https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/identifying-greener-cleaning-products>
Environmental Protection Agency. Recommendations of Specifications, Standards, and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing. EPA. <https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/recommendations-specifications-standards-and-ecolabels-federal-purchasing>
Federal Trade Commission. Environmental Claims Summary of the Green Guides. FTC. <https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/public_events/975753/ftc_-_environmental_claims_summary_of_the_green_guides.pdf>
Federal Trade Commission. Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims. FTC. <https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/documents/federal_register_notices/guides-use-environmental-marketing-claims-green-guides/greenguidesfrn.pdf>
Federal Trade Commission. Use of Term Natural on Food Labeling. FTC. <https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition/use-term-natural-food-labeling>
National Center for Complimentary and Integrative Health. Natural Doesn’t Necessarily Mean Safer or Better. NCCIH. <https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/know-science/natural-doesnt-mean-better#:~:text=But%20there%20are%20many%20toxic,and%20can%20even%20cause%20death.>
Oxford English Dictionary. “Greenwashing” Defined by Oxford English Dictionary. OED. <https://www.oed.com/viewdictionaryentry/Entry/249122#:~:text=The%20creation%20or%20propagation%20of,greenwash%20v./>
Watson, B. (2016, August 20). The Troubling Evolution of Corporate Greenwashing. The Guardian. <https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/aug/20/greenwashing-environmentalism-lies-companies>
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