Greenwashing on April Fool's Day: Don't Be Fooled by Environmental Claims!

What do you mean by Greenwashing?

You may or may not have heard of the term “greenwashing” or sometimes known as “green sheen.” But do we really know what it means? By definition, “greenwashing” means companies that deceitfully define themselves as eco-friendly but not truly practicing sustainability. They appear to be environmentally friendly on the surface but when you start digging deep inside the bowels of the company,  you may discover that they are merely trying to make a fool out of the consumers.

They don’t practice what they preach and that’s not a good thing for the consumers and for our planet earth.

We have listed the top ten signs of greenwashing because at Verte Mode we believe in promoting eco-friendly products and we have no time for foolishness especially when it comes to sustainability. 

1. Superficial language

   They use terms on the company’s packaging and advertising on sustainability that have no substance or clear meaning. 

2. Green Products vs. Dirty Company

   A product that is considered efficient or sustainable but yet was produced in a factory that pollutes our environment.

3. Inappropriate claims

   Defining the company as being “green” but there’s only one small aspect of the company that is “green” and the rest of its practices contributes to pollution

4. Goals with no measurable targets or actionable plans

   This can be found in some sustainability report that they put out but with no real sustainable goals or actions to hold them accountable. 

5. Designations of products that are not credible

   Calling a dangerous product such as cigarettes as being “eco-friendly” to make it seem safe is just wrong on many levels.  

6. Jargons

   Using fancy words that only a scientist could understand or sometimes it does not even make sense. Another way to fool consumers is that they are a green company.

7. Friends that Don’t Exist

   Creating labels that look as if a third-party has endorsed it except that they don’t really exist. 

8. No Evidence or Proof

   Claiming something about their products that sounds believable but there is no evidence to back up these claims.

9. Over the top Media Campaigns

   Exaggerated claims about the eco-friendliness of a company, e.g. oil companies. Need we say more? 

10. Outright Lies

The last but certainly not the least on our list is just the plain lies that these companies tell their consumers. They invent claims that are simply and completely not true. If these companies think they are fooling us, well they are not!