We’ve all been to the grocery store at some point and felt a little overwhelmed. Strolling with our cart, aisle after aisle. Checking items off the list and once in a while indulging in a treat here and there. There are countless options, brands, and styles to choose from. Some new items look enticing enough to try out for the first time, while others are long time favorites for the whole family. While we trek through the seemingly endless store, sometimes we find ourselves stuck between two or three options, not knowing which one to choose. That’s when our conscience kicks in and tells us to go with the “green” option; the one that’s better for the planet. Before you leave the store feeling proud of your efforts to save the earth, take a closer look at the packaging to see if it’s all it’s cracked up to be, or if you have been the victim of greenwashing.
The term “greenwashing” was originally coined by environmentalist and researcher Jay Westerveld in 1986 (The Guardian). It is a marketing technique that misleads or falsely aligns a company’s products or services as being sustainable or at least less destructive of the environment. Greenwashing has been used by a number of corporations with awful environmental records, such as Chevron, DuPont, and Nestle. In the mid-1980’s, Chevron launched their “People Do” campaign showing images of Chevron employees protecting bears, butterflies, and sea turtles. At the same time, they were violating the clean air act, the clean water act, and spilling oil (The Guardian). In 2005, General Electrics announced its “ecomagination initiative“ in an effort to position the company as a leader in developing environmental technologies. Meanwhile, they fought the EPA to avoid cleaning up pollutants leaked by their factory into the Hudson River (The New York Times). In the early 2000’s, Coca-Cola launched Coke Life, boasting less sugar and cloaking their new product in green packaging (The Atlantic). They were utilizing another common marketing tactic by trying to link sustainability to personal health. Coca-Cola has a terrible track record related to the environment; they were recently named the world’s most polluting brand in a plastic waste audit conducted by Break Free From Plastic (Forbes). The list of corporations using greenwashing to deceive customers goes on and on.
So what are the dangers of greenwashing? How do these misleading marketing tactics affect the planet? And why should you care? For starters, greenwashing might prevent the sale of an actual environmentally-friendly option. One lost sale might not seem like much, but when done repeatedly across countries all over the world, the dollar amount really adds up. Second, because you’re not buying the right product for the planet, you may be contributing to more harm. Lastly, purchasing greenwashed items financially supports companies that are deceptive and dishonest. Which begs the question, what else is the company hiding?
In today’s economy, businesses are very motivated to use greenwashing to increase sales. Companies have noticed that more and more consumers are taking the environment into account when they decide to make a purchase. The environmental movement as a whole has been gaining more attention in recent years. Corporations see this as an opportunity to cash in and attract new customers. Unfortunately they sometimes take advantage of well-meaning consumers by trying to make their products or services seem more sustainable than they really are. Many companies don’t want to make the initial investment to shift over to sustainable ingredients and practices, which can be expensive. It is easier for them to just slap an eye-catching label on their product rather than convince a board of shareholders to do the right thing for the planet.
There’s no doubt that consumers have rights, and businesses should be responsible for their actions and transparent about their practices. In 1992 The Federal Trade Commission developed Green Guides to help marketers avoid making environmental claims that mislead consumers. The Guides, which were updated in 1998 and 2012, discourage marketers from using broad, unqualified claims about environmental benefits and making claims without competent scientific evidence. Some forms of greenwashing can be illegal and companies can be held accountable (The Federal Trade Commission).
Greenwashing is becoming more and more pervasive in the marketplace. To identify a greenwashed product or service, try to avoid vague terms like green, earth-friendly, natural, eco-friendly, environmental, bio, pure, etc. These terms are unregulated and companies are generally free to incorporate them into their marketing strategies without any oversight. Another common technique used in greenwashing is packaging and branding with graphics of trees, plants, flowers, or the planet. Don’t take these images at face-value. Dig a little deeper to see if the product or service you’re looking at is actually sustainable.
There are a number of factors that can make an item truly environmentally-friendly. Look for products that use minimal packaging (especially plastic), are produced or manufactured locally, without the use of pesticides or harmful chemicals, and are accompanied by an independent third-party endorsement. Several “ecolabels” are regulated according to a strict set of standards, and are based on legitimate environmental research. Here are a few certifications to look for.
Environmental Working Group: recognizes products that meet strict standards for health, ingredient disclosure, and manufacturing processes; cannot contain any “ingredients of concern”, which are linked to cancer, asthma, birth defects, and fertility problems.
Forest Stewardship Council: ensures that products come from responsibly managed forests that provide environmental, social and economic benefits.
Marine Stewardship Council: uses an ecolabel and fishery certification program to recognize sustainable fishing practices.
Quality Assurance International: verifies compliance with organic standards at each link of the product supply chain, from agriculture, food processing facilities, packing and manufacturing operations, to traders, distributors, retailers and, ultimately, consumers.
USDA Organic: indicates foods grown and processed according to federal guidelines addressing soil quality, animal raising practices, pest and weed control, etc. Produce must be grown without most synthetic fertilizers and pesticides; animals must be fed organic feed and cannot receive antibiotics or hormones; processed foods cannot contain artificial preservatives, colors, or flavors (more info at USDA.gov).
If you care about the environment, it is important to “vote with your dollar”. This means using your purchasing power to support sustainable companies and products whenever possible. As consumers, we need to seize every opportunity to drive demand for products that help the environment and its limited resources.