Whatever else it may be accused of, the environmental movement could never be said to be depriving consumers of choice. A simple walk around a supermarket will expose you to a plethora of “eco” labels, and there is certainly rather a lot of green advertising around. Companies have cottoned on to the fact that people are concerned about the future of the planet, and are falling over each other to promote their green credentials.

Green claims can take many different forms. Some are quasi-governmental, in that a government has set a framework with which the product complies. Some are part of self-certified initiatives, where a company has devised its own environmental management system. Some claims are made on the basis of the company working in partnership with an outside organisation, such as an environmental charity. And there are associations, or “roundtable” initiatives, where a number of companies in the same sector get together to try to create higher standards for their industry.

Independent standards

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