Greenwashing

12/03/2010

By Nigel Miller, Partner, Fox Williams LLP

Environmental issues are increasingly becoming part of companies' marketing strategies, as consumers become more aware of the environmental impact of their product and service choices. Many businesses and other organisations are capitalising on this new awareness and are actively promoting their "green" credentials through advertising. However, as consumers and the general public become more aware of the environmental impact of their spending choices, so does their cynicism over companies' green claims or "greenwashing".

That is not to say that companies should avoid making green claims - only that they should go about it very carefully.
How...

...is advertising regulated in the UK? Advertising in the UK relies primarily on self-regulation. The principal self-regulation bodies are:

o The Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP).

o The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA).

The CAP. The Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) is the body responsible for creating, revising and enforcing a number of codes on advertising.

The CAP is made up of representatives from trade and professional organisations and is funded by a small levy on advertising. The CAP also provides pre-publication advice on copy to members on non-broadcast advertisements and post-publication advice in cases where the ASA rules in an adjudication that the wording in the advert needs to be changed.


The codes that are usually relevant to environmental claims in advertising are:

o The British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (the CAP Code), which applies to non-broadcast marketing communications in the UK. The CAP Code includes specific requirements for environmental claims. These are set out in clause 49 of the CAP Code.

o The CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code (the TV Code), which applies to broadcast marketing communications. This article focuses on the CAP Code, as most complaints about green claims arise... continued on page two >

 

 

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