people on the full environmental
benefits of new sustainability-led
packaging initiatives. A recent
Hartman Group study found that
only half of US consumers are familiar with the term “sustainability” and
most of them cannot define it.
It is clear, however, that people are
willing and want to learn more about
ethical issues and how they can play
their own part. A recent survey commissioned by the Carbon Trust in the
UK showed that 66 percent of people
wanted to know the “carbon footprint” of their purchases and 67 percent said the information would
influence their purchasing decisions.
While these findings undoubtedly
reflect an idealized response on the
part of respondents, they still reinforce the notion that people are
demanding more information on the
environmental impact of products.
Consumers are also questioning
the broader integrity of the ethical
movement. International corporate
scandals such as Enron, WorldCom
and Global Crossing have led to a
fundamental reassessment of the relationship between corporations and
consumers in the 21st century. The
loss of trust in corporations has
resulted in a number of consumers
becoming skeptical towards companies which claim to be ethical, yet
provide little evidence for it or provide misinformation. According to a
2007 report by TerraChoice
Environmental Marketing, an overwhelming majority of environmental
marketing claims in North America
are inaccurate, inappropriate or
unsubstantiated. Using metrics from
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
and the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), TerraChoice concluded that all but one of the claims, out
of more than 1000 products
reviewed, raised red flags. Ranging
from cleaning and personal care
products to televisions and printers,
the report concluded that the claims
in question are “…either demonstrably false or risk misleading
intended audiences” ( brandchannel.com, 2008). “Greenwashing,” a
term used to describe this practice, only serves to increase skepticism
and can leave a company open to criticism.
The Next Step…
We are reaching the point where transparent, ethical branding
will become an automatic expectation in the same way that consumers expect their products to be nontoxic and safe to use. Faced
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