Getting to grips with greenwashing

Sustainability experts share an insight into the misleading marketing tactic of greenwashing & detail how consumers & brands can act on it

REBECCA HITCHON REPORTS

Are you part of the 25% of consumers prepared to pay more for sustainable goods*? While public interest in and understanding of eco purchasing choices has increased dramatically in recent years, buying a product that is sustainable isn’t as straightforward as it may seem. A *YouGov research on behalf of Deloitte.

Yasmine Amr

“We’ve reached a stage where consumers expect sustainability and corporate responsibility to be a given, not a differentiating factor. However, I think this is a key driver behind greenwashing: when a company makes environmental claims without being able to back them up,” says Yasmine Amr, founder of Boop: a beauty and Yasmine Amr wellness retailer offering discounted products that would otherwise be destroyed or wasted. “The result is companies misleading customers into believing they are more environmentally friendly than they are.”

Jessi Baker

“The retail market is experiencing a shift towards value-driven shopping,” adds Jessi Baker, a member of the Sustainable Beauty Coalition advisory committee & founder of sustainability marketing technology brand, Provenance. “As a result, the beauty industry is rife with greenwashing tactics, which provide vague or misleading information about environmental, social and governance practices, to win over customers. But consumers are getting wise to it: 41% of beauty shoppers surveyed by creative consultancy, The Pull Agency, in 2022 said that greenwashing is noticeable.

Jess Rigg

” Jess Rigg, project manager at Green Salon Collective, which helps UK salons to reduce and consciously dispose of their waste and reduce emissions, comments: “Greenwashing is becoming increasingly common in the hair, beauty and nail industries. This is particularly problematic when salons or clients buy and use a product because Jess Rigg they believe it has less of an environmental impact than other options, however this isn’t the case due to greenwashing ploys.”

How are green claims regulated?

Yasmine Amr, who was in the legal profession before founding Boop, tells Scratch that there are two ways green claims are policed in the UK. “The term ‘greenwashing’ isn’t defined under UK law, however there are laws around misleading practices, which have consequences like fines or imprisonment if they are likely to affect consumers’ purchasing decisions,” she explains.

“There are also regulatory codes: the Competition & Markets Authority’s Green Claims Code and Advertising Standards Authority’s CAP Code, containing guidance on green claims. These don’t come with penalties and legal consequences currently – the consequences are reputational.”

“Greenwashing is becoming increasingly common in the hair, beauty and nail industries. This is particularly problematic when salons or clients buy and use a product because they believe it has less of an environmental impact than other options, however this isn’t the case due to greenwashing ploys.”

The EU is making efforts to better police greenwashing, with members of the European Parliament and the European Council approving in January the ban of generic environmental claims that cannot be proven, such as ‘green’, ‘eco’, ‘environmentally friendly’, ‘natural’, ‘climate neutral’ and ‘biodegradable’. Claims that a product has a neutral, reduced or positive impact on the environment because its producer offsets emissions are included within the ban.

“The beauty industry is rife with greenwashing tactics, which provide vague or misleading information about environmental, social and governance practices, to win over customers.”

Also set to be banned are sustainability labels not based on approved certification schemes or established by public authorities. EU countries have 24 months to incorporate the ban into their national laws. “Elsewhere in the US, the Federal Trade Commission is releasing the first update to its Green Guides in 10 years,” adds Jessi Baker.

Signs of greenwashing

“Tell-tale signs of greenwashing include unproven or unsubstantiated claims, vague language with no specific definition like ‘eco’ or ‘green’ and self-accreditation: where a brand does not work with an independent company to ensure reputable transparency or verification,” shares Jessi Baker.

“Signs of greenwashing can also be labels or natural-looking packaging, which create the impression that a product is a more environmentally friendly option, or a retailer promoting a ‘conscious edit’ of products if the standard for inclusion is lower than a consumer may expect,” reveals Yasmine Amr. “Sometimes, greenwashing can be more difficult to spot, for example when a brand includes recycling claims and symbols on products without properly explaining how the items can be recycled. A lot of materials need to be collected via a specialist recycling scheme and consist of different components, which need to be recycled separately.”

Spotted greenwashing? Here’s what to do next

“If you think a brand is using greenwashing tactics, ask them about their claims,” advises Jess Rigg. “Also, carry out some research into if the brand has third-party certification, such as B Corp, PETA Cruelty-Free, Fairtrade, COSMOS, the Vegan Society and the Soil Association.”

“Brands should ensure that all environmental claims are accurate, can be backed up with evidence and avoid temptation to appear more sustainable than they truly are.”

Brand advice

brands, such as training course, The Marketer’s Guide to Sustainability, and a framework that provides clear standards on how to make over 120 different claims.”

“Brands should ensure that all environmental claims are “Ask the brand about their claims on social media or another public channel – they won’t address the issue if they aren’t asked about it,” notes Jessi Baker. “Then, direct the brand to Provenance (www.provenance.org), where there are free resources to help accurate, can be backed up with evidence and avoid temptation to appear more sustainable than they truly are,” says Jess Rigg. “Audiences prefer honesty and want to be taken along a brand’s sustainability journey.”

Yasmine Amr shares that she used to help companies with claims in her role as a lawyer, and the key is to be entirely factual. “Brands need to scrutinise the claims they want to make and not distract from environmentally harmful practices using green claims,” she details. “If wanting to say that a bottle is made from 100% recycled materials, can you indicate whether this excludes the cap or ink used? If wanting to promote that a product contains organic ingredients, can you clearly indicate what percentage of the product is organic or have you attained independent certification?

“However, we’re seeing a growing trend of ‘greenhushing’: when a brand keeps quiet about its sustainability goals or achievements for fear of being perceived as greenwashing,” Yasmine continues. “In fact, one in four companies don’t publicise their emission reduction targets beyond what is required, according to South Pole’s Net Zero report 2022. This is harmful, as it means other brands won’t be pressured to match competitors’ sustainability initiatives.” “Provenance is a tool for every brand that wants to make sustainability claims without greenwashing, as it validates and amplifies sustainability credentials for goods,” adds Jessi Baker. “It provides the data infrastructure and framework to enable brands and multi-brand retailers to communicate sustainability confidently throughout the customer journey, so that they can realise their eco ambitions and future-proof their market share.”