In aisles filled with shelves stacked with a variety of “green” or “eco-friendly” products, it can be difficult to determine which product is the best. Not only for you, the consumer, but also for the environment.Within the last decade, there has been a rising trend of consumers wanting eco-friendly, organic, cruelty free, and any other green color or label you can think of. Sounds pretty awesome, right? Green is good! But what does “green” really mean?
As a Sustainability Science and Communications Studies double major, I have had the opportunity to evaluate different types of green marketing and the implications of this practice. Specifically, the related social and environmental consequences of greenwashing.
What is greenwashing?
Greenwashing is a practice companies use to falsely promote the image of their brand as “environmentally safe” or “eco.” In 2017, Unilever reported that a third of consumers choose to buy certain products simply because they believe they are being socially and environmentally responsible. 21% of the people surveyed said they would actively choose brands if they made their sustainability credentials clearer on their packaging and in their marketing.
Due to trending conversation surrounding the pressing issue of climate change and sustainable development initiatives, it’s actually beneficial for brands greenwash because it essentially targets consumers who are attempting to be environmentally responsible. By strategically green marketing their products, companies are able to appeal to the majority of consumers who prefer ethically sourced products, at no expense of their own. Greenwashed products are designed to look green, feel green, which effectively disguised the fact that the manufacturer and company itself are not actually green.
All that’s green isn’t eco-friendly..
Howard Rheingold, lecturer at the University of California Berkeley discusses the importance of critical consumption in his article, “21st Century Social Media Literacies.” Critical consumption, or “crap detection,” is the ability to decide what you allow into your cipher so you may be better able to devote your attention to things that are true and trustworthy.
Today, approximately 79% of Americans have a social media profile and even if you don’t, most consumption is based on advertisements, celebrity endorsements, and …. featured on digital media. Social media is one platform that companies have begun to utilize as a tool to promote their brand to consumers in an easily accessible way. Digital media platforms, such as Instagram, allow businesses to sponsor themselves on people’s feeds, whether the user chooses to follow the brand or not.
Look for the green camouflage
Often times brands will design their packaging using earth tone colors or any variation of the color green. This technique visually creates the allusion that the product is “natural” and by association, the brand itself is also natural and earth friendly.
Terms and phrases such as:
- Plant based
- Organic (It’s not organic unless it organically certified, read the label!)
- Chemical free
- Paraben free
- Gentle enough for everyday use
- High-quality ingredients
- Sourced from nature
These are other examples of how companies use language to convince consumers that they are improving themselves as well as the environment. However, these words do not explicitly state the company’s commitment to their environmental impact. They merely allude to the idea that there is a mutually beneficial relationship between the company and the environment– even if there isn’t. Still, it certainly makes the products sound more appealing.
These deceptive techniques and use of ambiguous words illustrate the urgent need for users to be aware and more critical of the information they allow into their cipher so that they may be able to make more responsible choices for what they choose to consume.
Figi Water isn’t that friendly
Figi Water: (this post in particular really boils my blood)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BRq7a_hBkr8/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
The dark and cloudy smoke stacks beside the bright green and blue islands creates an interesting juxtaposition of color and environment. The post seems to suggest that Figi Water is excluded from all things unnatural and manufactured. However, the brand (strategically) fails to mention the expensive energy costs and plastic waste created by shipping the bottles from Figi to the US as well as other countries around the world. How can this brand claim to be the “#EarthsFinest” and not treat our planet like it is the finest?!
You don’t have to be a Sustainability Science major to know that there is nothing environmentally friendly about consuming more energy and resources and producing more plastic waste and pollution.
5 ways to avoid the green screen
- Don’t believe everything you read: Verify the labels and claims made on the packaging labels.
- Question the company: Are they owned by another larger company? Where are ingredients sourced from?
- Research: Let’s be honest, how many of us actually know what parabens or AHAs are? Are they really that bad? What other chemicals are not included on the green label that you should be concerned about?
- Shop local or DIY to ensure a higher quality products while also supporting your community
For further reading
Tried and true-ly natural products
8 More Brands You Think Are Eco Friendly, But Aren’t
Why Greenwashing Benefits Companies
How Can Consumers Find Out If a Corporation Is “Greenwashing” Environmentally Unsavory Practices?
The Life of Slife 