Environmental and sustainability claims are often used to attract environmentally conscious consumers. However, a study commissioned by the European Commission a few years ago found that 53.3% of the environmental claims examined were vague, misleading, or unfounded, and 40% were not substantiated by evidence. Even though many businesses make significant efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other negative environmental impacts—and naturally wish to highlight these efforts—it can be challenging, even for reputable companies, to navigate the requirements for such marketing.
The open letter emphasizes that businesses must be clear, precise, and accurate when communicating about the environmental impact of their products. Environmental and sustainability claims must be substantiated and must relate to the specific products being marketed. This is an issue the Norwegian Consumer Authority has previously addressed. For example, in 2022, the Authority scrutinized the use of the Higg MSI tool—which measures the environmental impact of various textiles—by Norrøna and H&M, as well as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), which developed the tool. The main objections were that Higg MSI did not consider the overall environmental impact throughout the product’s entire lifecycle, but only certain types of environmental effects such as global warming and water consumption during the production phase, and that the tool was based on average figures rather than the actual products being marketed.
Another recommendation highlighted in the letter is to avoid general and vague environmental claims such as “green,” “eco-friendly,” or “sustainable.” The Norwegian Consumer Authority has also been active in this area. For example, it took the initiative and led a joint enforcement action through the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) network, which consists of European consumer authorities, against Zalando. This enforcement led to Zalando removing its own “eco-label” and other misleading sustainability symbols from its online stores.
A general recommendation is to focus on highlighting specific environmental initiatives rather than making broad sustainability claims. However, it is essential to provide concrete and verifiable information about the environmental benefits of such initiatives. Emphasizing future environmental ambitions or contributions to environmental projects with unclear effects should be avoided, in light of the documentation requirements.
The legal framework for environmental marketing will also become stricter in the future. The first step is the implementation of the EU Directive 2024/825 on strengthening consumer protection in the green transition, which is expected to be incorporated into Norwegian law in due course. This directive will introduce more specific rules, such as a ban on the use of sustainability labels that are not based on a certification scheme or established by public authorities. This will give the Consumer Authority a clearer legal basis for enforcement of issues that currently fall under the general prohibition against misleading marketing in the Marketing Act. The directive also introduces requirements to provide information about the possibilities for repair of the product. In addition, the EU is considering a proposal for a so-called “Green Claims Directive,” which will introduce even more detailed rules for the use of environmental claims, supplementing the existing legal framework.
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Are you unsure how the new regulations will affect your business, or do you have questions about how to properly substantiate environmental claims?
