Greenwashing is a term used to describe the practice of companies spinning their products and policies as environmentally friendly, when in fact it is a just a deceptive use of green PR or green marketing.
Consumers and companies need to be aware of this practice and be able to recognize what products, services and/or practices are truly safe, effective, and environmentally friendly. Education is key.
The following comment comes from Keith Miller, Manager of Environmental Initiatives and Sustainability at 3M, based in St. Paul, Minnesota. He spoke at a Conference Board’s annual Business and Sustainability Conference in DC recently and answered a question about greenwashing. Good information!
“Firstly, there are no blanket statements that ‘this product is green’. We avoid using broad environmental claims such as “safe for the environment” or environmentally friendly”. Claims must be specific and be clear to customers or the general public.
Secondly, claims must be relevant to the product. For example, claiming that a product is cadmium free, when the product has never contained cadmium, and nor have any of its competitors, is not relevant.
Thirdly, that there must be compelling data to substantiate the claim. We need to know the claim is technically accurate. “