The Central Consumer Protection Authority Issues Guidelines for ‘Prevention and Regulation of Greenwashing and Misleading Environmental Claims’ 2024
- It issued in furtherance to the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
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- CCPA has exercised its mandate to regulate matters relating to misleading advertisements which are prejudicial to the interest of public and consumers.
- The guidelines will apply to all environmental claims made by manufacturers, service providers or traders whose goods, products or services are the subject of an advertisement.
- It will also apply to an advertising agency or endorser whose service is available for the advertisement of such goods, products or services.
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Key Features of the Guidelines by CCPA
- Clear Definitions: Guidelines provide clear definitions of terms related to greenwashing and environmental claims to ensure that both businesses and consumers have a common understanding.
- Transparency Requirements: Manufacturers and service providers are required to substantiate their environmental claims with credible evidence by providing detailed information on the methodology and data used to support such claims.
- Prohibition of Misleading Terms: Use of vague or misleading terms such as “eco-friendly,” “green,” and “sustainable” without proper substantiation is sought to be prohibited.
- Adequate Disclosures: Companies are required to provide clear and accessible disclosures of material information.
- Claims must specify the aspect referred to such as goods, manufacturing process, packaging, etc. and must be supported by credible certification or reliable scientific evidence.
What is Greenwashing?
- Greenwashing refers to companies, organisations, or even countries making questionable or unverifiable claims about being environmentally or climate-friendly.
- These unsubstantiated claims are used to deceive consumers into believing that a company’s products are environmentally friendly.
- For example in the 2015 Volkswagen scandal, the company cheated on emissions tests for its “green” diesel vehicles.
- Misleading Claims: Companies and governments often exaggerate or mislead regarding their eco-friendly initiatives.
Central Consumer Protection Authority
- Establishment: CCPA was established in July 2020 under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
- Aim: To protect the rights of consumers by cracking down on unfair trade practices and false and misleading advertisements that are detrimental to the interests of the public and consumers.
- Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution.
- Composition: Chief Commissioner as head and two other commissioners as members.
- One of whom will deal with matters relating to goods while the other will look into cases relating to services.
- Powers:Make interventions when necessary to prevent consumer detriment arising from unfair trade practices and to initiate class action.
- It can take suo-moto actions, Recall products, order reimbursement of the price of goods/services, cancel licences.
- Pass orders of discontinuation of practices that are unfair and prejudicial to consumers’ interests and impose penalties in cases of false or misleading advertisements
- Investigation wing: Headed by a director-general, which may conduct inquiry or investigation into consumer law violations.
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- Corporate Accusations: Big corporations such as Shell, BP, and Coca-Cola have faced accusations of greenwashing.
- Rising Pressure: Increasing awareness of climate change has led to pressure on corporations and governments to reduce environmental damage.
- Many have legal commitments and targets to meet.
- Countries Involved: Nations can also greenwash by overstating their forest carbon absorption potential or the impact of new carbon regulations.Carbon Trading Scrutiny: Carbon trading and carbon offset mechanisms, like air travel being offset by tree planting, are often questioned for their scientific validity and may lead to greenwashing.
- UN’s Stand: The UN Secretary-General called for zero tolerance on greenwashing, establishing an expert group to curb misleading practices by non-state entities like corporations or regions with net-zero goals.
- Types of Greenwashing: Sometimes companies genuinely overestimate their environmental impact, but intentional misleading practices are more serious.
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- Bluewashing: When companies or organizations emphasise their commitment to social and environmental responsibility, often by associating with organisations like the United Nations (UN), without actually making significant or impactful changes.
- It’s a form of misleading claims to appear ethical or socially responsible.
- Pinkwashing: When companies market themselves as supportive of LGBTQ+ rights to appear progressive, while not taking real or meaningful actions to support the LGBTQ+ community.
- It can involve using Pride symbols for profit without genuine advocacy for LGBTQ+ causes.
- Purplewashing: Similar to pinkwashing, but specifically refers to companies promoting themselves as champions of gender equality or feminism, often to appeal to women consumers, while not addressing or improving gender issues within their organisations or practices.
- Brownwashing: When companies claim to be supportive of racial justice or diversity, especially after movements like Black Lives Matter, without implementing real changes in terms of inclusivity or racial equity.
- It’s about appearing supportive of marginalized racial groups while doing little to address systemic issues.
October 16, 2024
