Beware of Greenwashing
Many companies have made over-the-top claims of being "green" and are now being met with suspicion and eroding consumer trust. This is called greenwashing, and it’s happening left and right.
Is your company in danger of greenwashing? Read more about going green, and the dangers of greenwashing below.
go green the right way
Making the shift towards green practices is a good move that can show innovation in your company, social responsibility, improve revenue streams and most importantly help the environment. But, be sure to have your “house” in order before promoting anything as being green.
So, how can you go green the right way and avoid greenwashing? We've collected a number of articles that address the issues associated with going green...
Save The Planet, Lose The Guilt
Just because we all sin against the environment doesn't mean we should believe every "green" idea
Jesse Ellison
To get a sense of how well-intentioned people
can lose their bearings in the sea of green hype, consider the case of
Fiji Water. With its bottles featuring images of pristine tropical
flowers, the Fiji company started to worry when critics began bashing
the environmental impact of water bottles, which will pile up in
landfills for thousands of years. It got more worried when it became
fashionable for consumers to calculate the carbon footprint of the
products they buy—the amount of greenhouse gas emitted in manufacturing
and distribution. The bottled-water business has absurdly big feet.
Unlike tap water, bottled water doesn't flow freely to the people who
drink it, but must be carried by gas-guzzling trucks and planes in
bottles made of plastic (which is made from petroleum). So late last
year, Fiji decided to meet the "water backlash" head-on with a plan to
reduce the use of packaging, switch to more efficiently recyclable
plastics and compensate for other carbon sins by buying offsets that
would reduce emissions elsewhere.
How to Avoid Eco-Fatigue
Not Only Marketers: Media Also Needs to Do Its Part to Keep Consumers From Burning out
By Jennifer Maxwell-muir
Published: August 19, 2008
People are getting sick. A wave of green fatigue, eco-exhaustion
and environmental anxiety is spreading among consumers. Overwhelmed by
choices, disgusted by corporate hype and living with the fear their
efforts will never be enough, people are tuning out, say the experts.
One could argue the media industry is just getting sick of its
own reporting -- who hasn't done a "green" issue? -- and is looking for
the next trend. The Columbia Journalism Review in June reported that
the press has moved from "environmental exigency to exhaustion." From
The New York Times to Wired magazine, reporters are talking up the
weary consumer.
It's not all hype. Greenwashing is happening left and right.
Over-the-top claims by companies jumping on the "eco" bandwagon are
being met with suspicion and are eroding consumer trust. Then, sadly,
when true progress is made by companies pushing the boundaries, such as
Patagonia and its Footprint Chronicles, little is mentioned in the
mainstream press.
Green Shopping Trends Tapped in Studies, Launch of E-Commerce Platform
By Leslie Guevarra
September 4, 2008
Eco-friendly
shopping trends have inspired two studies of U.S. buying habits and are
fueling eBay's launch of a new online marketplace that's aimed at
channeling purchasing power with consumers' interests in environmental
and social responsibility.
News of the studies and the online
initiative came Wednesday as The Body Shop told of research showing
that consumers' expectations for corporate ethics and behavior continue
to grow despite the tough economic climate, the Canadian market
research firm ICOM said that graying shoppers are the leading
purchasers of green household products and eBay went live with its
venture called WorldofGood.com.
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Beware of Greenwashing: Not All Environmental Claims are Meaningful
Green•wash
(gren'wosh', -w™sh') – verb: the act of misleading purchasers regarding
the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits
of a product or service.
By Scot Case
The
growing demand for more environmentally preferable goods and services
has led many manufacturers to find cost-effective ways of improving
their environmental performance and the environmental performance of
their offerings. As a result, safer cleaning products are available.
Computers, copiers, and other office equipment are available without
hazardous components. Cars are more efficient. Fewer trees are being
cut to make paper. Less polluting energy sources are increasingly
available.
Unfortunately, not all manufacturers have made the
investments necessary to provide more environmentally preferable
products. In order to compete in a market that demands “green”
products, some manufacturers have resorted to creative advertising
instead.
The practice of inflating a company's or its product's
environmental benefits is known as greenwashing. The practice appears
to be growing and purchasers are learning that they must carefully
examine all environmental claims to ensure the environmental benefits
they seek are reflected in the products and services they buy.
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