What is “greenwashing’’?
Fernanda Cannalonga, author of several initiatives for a more conscious life, defines the practice as “an exaggerated, imprecise or false communication, when organizational practice doesn’t go hand in hand with the desire to communicate some change”. Basically, it’s a term that identifies the false idea of sustainability, whose real purpose isn’t related to a company’s principles but a manipulation of information to show an environmentally responsible image. It is, therefore, a marketing that shows a deceptive attempt to camouflage the real impact by making a positive publicity. As a strategy, greenwashing appears in many sectors such as: food, cosmetics and automobiles.
As much as the consumer is truly interested in the subject and looking for information about environmental impacts and sustainability, marketing brings them closer to the offers that companies propagate, making the products offered with sustainability appealing and without a certain transparency.
“Every company will always generate some trace in the environment and community, just like us, consumers. So, they have to face sustainability as a journey of continuous improvement”, says the lawyer, legal consultant and sustainability specialist Letícia Caroline Méo. For big companies to become sustainable is a complex and time-consuming process, unlike small ones that are at the beginning of their careers, emerging with the purpose of sustainability being the center and important when deciding which material suppliers to use, the product that will be sold and discussed.
Some “sins” of Greenwashing
One of the most common, explains Letícia, is the use of vague and ambiguous information that doesn’t convey to the consumer what he really wants to know. For example, saying that the product is “environmentally friendly” or “100% ecological”. In other words, they are generic information and unaccompanied by an interpretation just to get the consumer’s attention.
Another “sin” occurs when there’s no data proving the product is environmentally correct and, when the company is questioned, the information given is not accessible and there isn’t reliable certification. “Products that claim to be composed of responsible raw material and actually don’t have any reliable evidence that they are unrelated to deforestation, for example”, says the expert.
Also, the “sin of lying”, when the information given is false. A very famous example that occured in 2015 in the United States was the case of vehicle manufacturer Volkswagen. The controversy was about the emission of pollutants by several sold vehicles which were implemented with a software that falsified its data, considered a practice of Greenwashing.
Understanding what’s written on a label requires more in-depth knowledge through research on the product company’s own website. This is to avoid falling into false certifications or, as Méo says, “the cult of false labels”: seals that companies put on to imply that the product has been tested or approved by an institution and, in reality, it’s just to confuse the consumer. “For example, they put a bunny draw in the label and it says the product is vegan but, when verified, there isn’t anything proving this”, adds the lawyer.
Disclosure of information that may even be true, but is not important or useful in the consumer’s search is one of the issues of irrelevance it generates. Méo mentions the example of deodorant labels saying they “don’t emit CFCs” (gasses that affect the Ozone Layer), when, in fact, that substance was banned by law years ago and is no longer allowed to be emitted by any industry.
The last practice linked to Greenwashing involves publicizing something very positive about the product, but, on the other hand, hiding the negative issues, such as the viscose issue. The fabric is ecological, yet more than 150 million trees are cut down per year for its production. In other words, hiding other features for even greater environmental loss.
Some cases of greenwashing
- Cotton toilet paper
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Informs on the package that it uses reforestation celulose without presenting any type of seal acknowledging this declaration.
- Nestlé
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In 2008, launched a campaign with the slogan “bottled water is the most environmentally responsible product”, which had a very bad impact.
- Adidas
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Claimed that the “Stan Smith” shoes were made 50% of sustainable materials when, in fact, only the top piece followed that percentage. The sole and the rest of the shoe were not recycled.
- Zara
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As one of the biggest fast-fashion and greenwashing leaders, Zara practices a large mass production of clothing made with synthetic fibers and polyester, generating a lot of CO2 in the atmosphere, thus overloading landfills.
It’s possible to denunciate companies that practice greenwashing in: Procon, Conar and in consumidor.gov.br.
Swimming against the tide
How not to fall for these “ecological” products? Fernanda Cannalonga, who has studied these practices for at least 12 years, says that there is a lack of knowledge to overturn more sophisticated greenwashing practices. She adds that “it shouldn’t be in the customer’s hands to seek information meant to be already available and objective”.
Letícia Méo also suggests that “we need to take a more critical look at information and, above all, always question and demand that companies provide more appropriate data”.
Finally, through social media, the buyer has the power to gain more visibility, charging brands for changes and transparency so that it draws the attention of companies to start acting against this practice.
“Participate in discussion groups in order to provide a better understanding of the subject and get information from reliable sources such as the IDEC (Brazilian Institute for Consumer Protection)”, concluded Cannalonga with some ideas on how to at least reduce this practice over the years.
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The article above was edited by Milena Casaca.
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