Organizations making claims that a product, service, brand or business provides a benefit or is less harmful to the environment must align with the Green Claims Code. This is a set of guidance published by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to avoid greenwashing and misleading customers. Organisations should be careful to consider the full life cycle of products before making claims.
As a follow-on to the CMA’s Green Claims guidance, the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) has released guidance on the use of carbon neutral and net zero claims in advertising. This reflects research which found a lack of understanding among consumers regarding the meaning of the terms ‘net zero’ and ‘carbon neutral’ but also a high prevalence of these terms, leading to high potential for consumers to be misled. The new CAP guidance sets out steps advertisers should take to ensure they do not use unqualified claims and that claims are clearly explained with a company’s approach – for example, disclosing whether offsets are used.
After conducting an inquiry into ASOS, Boohoo, and George at Asda, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has released an open letter addressed to all fashion retailers, urging them to reassess their environmental claims. ASOS, Boohoo, and George at Asda have additionally entered into formal agreements to guarantee the accuracy and non-misleading nature of their environmental claims. As part of these agreements, the retailers have committed to forgoing ambiguous terms like ‘eco-friendly’ and misleading imagery in their marketing.
Source: Government Guidance