With greenwashing a dreaded accusation, and Green Claims legislation on the horizon, Michelle Carvill and Gemma Butler, authors, co-founders/directors of Can Marketing Save the Planet, talked us through how to navigate ‘eco’ language when marketing products.

Gemma began by explaining, what exactly is greenwashing? The Cambridge dictionary defines it as “The behaviours or activities that make people believe that a company is doing more to protect the environment than it really is.”

Examples of greenwashing

Greenwashing shows up in many ways, said Gemma, most obviously in advertising and marketing but there are also other culprits.

Blame shifting – a type of greenwashing whereby the responsibility of the company is passed off onto the consumer, often around the end-of-life of the products, e.g. through littering or recycling.

Labelling – the biggest tool marketers use. Eco labels have been used to make products stand out for their sustainability for decades, using vague words and natural images

Greenwashing by omission – only talking about the positive things a company is doing while ignoring negative impacts.

Moving the goalposts – setting ambitions and targets, reporting and talking about them, and then when they get closer, moving the goalposts without communicating why they have been moved.

Green hushing – organisations not talking about their progress because they’re scared to be called out for greenwashing. But not talking about it means we are slowing progress and not allowing other organisations to learn about the progress we are making. It also hides everything under the bonnet rather than talking about what is being done.

To really understand the different types of greenwashing and the marketing that can be at risk, Michelle suggested looking at live cases where claims have been made or upheld. High-profile companies such as Alpro, Lululemon, and a number of airlines have recently been in the spotlight for this. If your company is part of a really impactful industry, e.g. aviation, you have to be even more careful.

Interestingly, greenwashing claim challenges very often come from competitors to the company that is being challenged, noted Michelle; “So it’s about substantiating everything you’re putting out there.”

Regulations and guidelines

“Hands up if you’ve heard of the green claims code,” asked Gemma. About a quarter or so of the audience raised their hands.

Michelle explained how she attended a marketing conference recently and asked the same question. Of an audience with 200 markerters, only two raised their hands, “So, we are still coming up against the fact that marketers aren’t aware that the green claims code exists.”

Regulations are evolving globally, said Gemma and they are “much of a muchness,” comprised of pretty sound principles that sit behind greenwashing.

The EU Green Claims Directive, for one, is being introduced help consumers make truly green decisions and sits under the consumer protection act. The aim is for a common approach for the green claims across the EU.

“It is asking us to make reliable, comparable, verifiable claims. We need  clear criteria based on the latest scientific evidence and we are all required to substantiate our claims,” explained Gemma.

In addition, by 2026, terms such as climate neutral and climate positive that rely on offsetting will be banned from the EU. And terms such as environmentally friendly, natural, biodegradable, climate neutral or eco cannot be used without evidence. “If you are going to use these terms,” Gemma advised, “ensure the back-up information is easily accessible for clients and customers.”

Only sustainability labels using approved certification schemes will be allowed, “this is a big bold move as well,” added Gemma. “The EU is leading the way and setting some really strong parameters around what marketers can be publicly saying.”

Member states apply rules by these rules by 2026.

Similarly, the UK Green Claims Code came out in January 2021, in association with CMA and ICPEN. It was introduced after research found that 42% of the green claims being made could not be substantiated, said Michelle.

“It’s not just a stick to beat companies into doing better, but it is providing a framework for companies that are not necessarily talking about the good work they are doing and essentially green hushing, to have a framework with confidence and clarity to talk about the progress they are making,” Michelle explained.

There are six points that organisations have to ask themselves when making green claims:

1. Are your claims truthful and accurate?
2. Are your claims clear and unambiguous?
3. Do your claims omit or hide important information?
4. Do they only make fair and meaningful comparisons?
5. Have you substantiated your claims?
6. Do they consider the full lifecycle of a product?

The Green Claims Code has a really youthful website with a 13-point checklist which goes into more detail, added Michelle.

Greenwashing repercussions

Gemma explained that the CMA have just been given powers to fine directly, so they no longer have to go through long court cases. “If you persuade consumers to purchase something that they wouldn’t have otherwise purchased if it were not for the eco claim, then you are at risk of a direct fine from the CMA,” she said.

There are also long term risk beyond the fines, such as loss of trust in the company and impact on work culture and customer loyalty. Other companies may be wary of risk by association; organisations may be less likely to work with you as don’t want their own sustainability agenda at risk. And it can slow progress in sustainability as it prevents awareness and action.

“The majority of greenwashing isn’t intentional,” noted Gemma, “it is a lack of knowledge and awareness, not that people are out to deceive.”

Different territories have different penalties, in the UK from the CMA it can be up to 10% of revenue, therefore a substantial sum and essential to avoid.

The best way to do this is to put a green claims process in place:

• Conduct an audit – are you making green claims? If so, where? What format? Can they be substantiated?
• Understand the regulation, in your territory and where your organisation operates;
• Create a formal process, agreed cross-functionally and get it signed off by the leadership team. Consider stages, checks and accountability;
• Apply the process to all green claims, to protect the organisation and support greater awareness and understanding of what the company is doing in relation to ESG;
• Create a list of banned terms – look at organisations that have had their advertising banned;
• Always start with the evidence and work claims from there, don’t make a claim then scrabble to find the evidence.

“If you get accused, showing you have due process in place can be the difference between getting fined and not getting fined, said Gemma.

If in doubt, Michelle emphasised, don’t:

• Use the generic words – recyclable, organic, environmentally friendly, carbon neutral, unless they can be validated and have readily available evidence;
• Don’t market ‘eco’ labels as a statement of fact. Vague words such as eco or green, or design using natural imagery;
• Don’t make claims on things you intend to do in the future unless you have a really substantial strategy to evidence and showcase steps and progression;
• Don’t make claims based on ambition – intentions are not actions;
• Don’t make claims based on external (supply chain) information unless your external supplier/partner can substantiate them – not enough that someone else told you it was compliant, as the penalty will be against you.

For further information and resources about green claims, the ASA shows rulings and complaints that have been upheld, which can be very useful on learning what is not allowed.

As well as their book, Can Marketing Save the Planet also has a podcast series, on one of which Gemma and Michelle interview Cecilia Parker Aranha from the CMA, titled ‘Inside the green claims code with CMA.’