What is greenwashing??? Hearing it come up more, but not fully aware of what it is or extent.
In: 8
From what I know it’s when a person or company says they’ll do something eco friendly but actually don’t follow through with it.
‘Greenwashing’ is a variation on ‘whitewashing.’ Say a rich guy is accused of misconduct; he’ll donate money to a worthy cause to make himself look better. He’s covered up the stain on his reputation with ‘whitewash.’
‘Greenwashing’ is when a company is accused of ecological crimes but wants to present itself as Pro Environment, or ‘Green.’ One good example is ‘clean coal.’ Coal is very polluting, but the companies will spned money promoting the idea that it can be made safer.
In cosmetics, it’s when a brand markets themselves as more “eco-friendly” or “natural” than other brands but there’s no evidence to support those claims. Like the brand Origins. Same ingredients the rest of Estée Lauder brands use.
It’s marketing some action as good for the environment while not actually making fundamental changes to improve the economy. Like some company hyping how they’ve replaced plastic packaging with cardboard, but still make poor quality product that needs to be replaced more often.
Don’t look at the man behind the curtain! Just trust that our new cardboard packaging and label that uses the word ‘natural’ (a meaningless, unregulated word, unlike ‘organic’) is, in fact, made by a company that cares about its impact on the environment instead of just your money in its pocket.
I’d add that greenwashing also covers appearing to be undertaking a change out of altruism when it is mandatory as well – one really glaring example is auto manufacturers increasing fuel economy “for a better future” (and because they are required to met CAFE standards for some of their biggest markets.)
or, if you are older, you may remember aerosol cans claiming to CFC free – again, because it was mandated by law as CFCs were banned.
One that you could find easily close to home is when you look at poultry or pork that claim to be raised naturally without hormones (the other day i noticed a brand proudly proclaim something along the lines of “hormone free since the beginning” – hormones are banned in most meat products by the USDA.)
Latest Answers