Eco Carbons Pty Ltd |

A recent article by Graham Samuel Chairman of the Australian Consumer & Competition Commission (ACCC) pointed out that consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of the products they buy and are leaning more towards environmentally friendly products.

Sellers have picked up on this heightened public awareness and have flooded the market with everything from beer to cars labeled as green, carbon neutral or environmentally friendly.

However the influx of “green” products has left some consumers confused by the different terms used and questioning just how valid some of those claims are.

The ACCC is concerned at some of the claims and are now taking steps to ensure consumers are not misled by marketing spin.

As a result the ACCC has released a fact sheet outlining consumers’ rights in relation to environmental claims. It has also released a green marketing guide for businesses and will be releasing specific guidance for business and consumers relating to the selling of carbon offset credits.

As the trade practices act protects consumers form misleading and deceptive conduct this means those making environmental claims need to be able to substantiate then with hard scientific evidence.

Consumers are not in a position to verify all the green marketing claims they are presented with and therefore have the right to expect they won’t be deceived by labeling or advertising.

That said there are steps shoppers can take to ensure they are getting what they are paying for.

For example be wary of ambiguous claims. Products that claim to be environmentally friendly, green, carbon neutral or otherwise, but fail to explain how and why can be misleading.

That’s not to say these terms cannot be used but they need to be qualified. A label on a washing machine that claims a four star rating on the government recognised WELS system provides much more information than a label that simply claims the machine is energy efficient or environmentally friendly.