MANNER lifestyle
GREENWASHING
As we focus on environmentally friendly alternatives , companies are adapting and creating green products , but are they as eco friendly as they seem ? Liana Shaw discusses greenwashing .
We all want to try and be a bit more eco
conscious , right ? I certainly did – and this year I ’ ve made a focussed effort to ditch a lot of brands and products that were not seen as eco friendly or sustainable . I ’ m really trying to be a conscious consumer ; you know , less waste , recycling and reusing , going plant based etc . And whilst I ’ m very proud of what I ’ ve achieved in this lifestyle so far , I ’ ve certainly learnt a few things . Getting through the minefield of greenness is becoming more difficult to navigate because of a fairly recent marketing phenomenon – greenwashing . What is greenwashing ? I felt Will Kenton ’ s article on Investopedia had a great definition : “ It is the process of conveying a false impression or providing misleading information about how a company ' s products are more environmentally sound . Greenwashing is considered an unsubstantiated claim to deceive consumers into believing that a company ' s products are environmentally friendly .”
This style of rebranding , promoting or advertising something to make it seem more green or sustainable than it really is , is actually extremely clever ( as in , it ’ s working ). The days of brands trying to get our devotion is growing ever more intense – in the decade I ’ ve spent in marketing , we ’ ve never been as swamped with choice than we are now . Big brands know that we are starting to look for more transparent and eco-friendly companies that are championing the environment and appearing to think more about their practices in environmental and ethical issues . More and more shoppers are looking for companies with soul , brands that we can see are talking the talk and walking the walk .
But here ’ s the catch – how do we weed out the companies and products that are actually adding to the world ’ s problem whilst masquerading as a thoughtful eco company , from those that are really trying to be a force for change ? �
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