Greenwashing is all the rage, it seems, with companies keen to maximise marketing of their environmentally conscious products and some taking it too far. It can be a dangerous game, if caught out, as Charles Russell Speechlys partner Caroline Greenwell and trainee Peter Carlyon explain in this week’s NLJ
There is also regulatory action to consider. The EU is clamping down, as is the UK energy sector with minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan announcing an investigation into the marketing of ‘green’ electricity tariffs. Several companies have also faced legal action over their environmental claims.
The authors write: ‘Brands have always competed on price, but it is becoming clear that they will now increasingly compete on sustainability…The cost of greenwashing may ultimately prove more expensive than the environmental initiatives themselves.’
