Have you ever heard of the term ‘greenwashing’? While it may sound like a good thing – making things ecofriendly – it’s actually quite the opposite. Greenwashing is a form of advertising where a company tricks you into thinking it is offering a sustainable brand or product, by using certain clever messaging. Sounds close to “brain-washing” now, doesn’t it? “SO, They’re LYING to me?” is probably what you’re thinking, but no, they’re not really lying, they’re maybe just exaggerating at best, or misdirecting attention to ONE component of the product that is sustainable. They are doing it all in such subtle ways that it works.
Greenwashing is not a new phenomenon. It has become recently popular because more people, and now especially those with influence, want to live an ‘eco-friendly’ lifestyle. Some brands are really trying to become sustainable but others use greenwashing as a marketing strategy so ‘going green’ has become the new current trend.
So, how do you figure out the difference? Well, that’s what we’re here for! Here are 10 signs of greenwashing to watch out for as a consumer:
- One of the biggest forms of greenwashing is simply the use of the colour GREEN. Seeing the colour green makes a consumer think green and therefore, sometimes assume the product is sustainable.
- The second most common is just mentioning the WORD green. Green is just a colour, and technically a very generic term with no definite meaning to it.
- If a brand is misdirecting attention to ONE or TWO components of the product that seem sustainable. For example:
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- Misdirecting attention to the packaging of the product, which is sustainable rather than the product itself, which is not.
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- Cute animals featured on the packaging, like a panda! This, again, makes the consumer think the product is sustainable when it may not actually be.
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- Sharing a vague fact about the product such as: ‘50% more sustainable than before’, however if the product was 2% sustainable earlier so now it is only 3% sustainable.
- The use of vague terms or symbols in the product description.
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- Showing the recycle sign ♻ but not specifying what part of the product can be recycled or if it is made from recycled materials.
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- Using words such as all-natural, chemical-free, eco-friendly, or non-toxic but without a clear definition of this.
- Making unrealistic promises about the product that seem too good to be true. If the promise sounds too good to be true, it is probably best to google it.
- While watching for greenwashing it is important to think about the entire production process of the product that is being purchased. One part of the process may be sustainable but not the entire cycle. Think about:
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- Labour
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- Transportation
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- Raw materials
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- Packaging
- Lack of proof of the claims made by the company. This is similar to vagueness. Here it is important to think about whether the claims can actually be proved.
- Using irrelevant labels or information such as CFCs free. Chlorofluorocarbons have been out of use for a long time now and are therefore irrelevant as MOST products don’t use them either.
- Showing fake certification through made-up logos on the product that could look like a “sustainable certificate”
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- This is hard in India, as there are not many trusted labels and certifications such as these. It is better to not believe the labels unless they are internationally recognised.
- Another important greenwashing aspect is indicating that the entire company or brand is sustainable when really only one product is.
It may seem like a LOT, but trust us, once you start to get the hang of noticing these things, you’ll just know intuitively which brands to pick. The best thing to do is, even if you spot ONE of these, is to actually research the product or company to see if they have declared sufficient information on what makes them sustainable. The genuine ones usually will. Good luck!
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