LAUNDERING LIES
Feb 2nd, 2013 by haileyrae
Greenwashing businesses may take a bath. Products claiming environmental compatibility to assuage consumer consciences have mushroomed as quickly as carbon gases over China. Just when you thought American businesses were waking up to the screaming need for global stewardship, the stats start talking back.
Scott McDougall, president of TerraChoice, an environmental marketing firm based in Ottawa reported earlier this year that,
…the number of “greener” products on store shelves has risen by 73 per cent since 2009. However, only 4.5 per cent of green products are what TerraChoice calls “sin-free”, while the rest commit “sins” that range from vague labelling and citing irrelevant facts to fibbing and outright fakery…1
McDougall goes on to say that some manufacturers even have their art departments mock up authentic looking green certification labels and apply them to their products assuming that consumers won’t read the fine print or sweat the company’s website. But there may be hope as the horizon heats up.
With awareness affiliations like TerraChoice, greenwashing violators increasingly on the hook for civil lawsuits and the recent Green House Gases Inventory Report publishing European successes and American failures, businesses might be forced to clean up their practice. Worth considering right now if you’re worried about getting scammed by the greenwashers is Iphone’s GoodGuide application. The app enables you to scan a product barcode to confirm its green legitimacy on over 120,000 products. Now that’s the kind of accountability a smart consumer can rely on.
It comes down to consumer intelligence. If we care about what we consume, we won’t get washed. With over 350 eco labels on the market, reading the fine print and ‘buyer beware’ continue to be the savvy consumer mantra
…and hey, there’s an app for that!