This was a full-page ad in the New York Times by Patagonia in 2011 on their Black Friday sale to remind consumers what they should be doing!
A message to buy less from a producer is quite rare and far from the norm. Usually, when we are browsing for a new product, we are bombarded with buzzwords from influential marketing campaigns touting how their products are leaner, greener, and cleaner than the rest.
The fact that greenwashing has become an apparent trend is not even denied by corporates anymore. According to a Harris Poll survey recently commissioned by Google Cloud, 58% of executives polled across 16 countries admit that their organization has overstated its sustainability efforts. Leading us to the question,
How do we cut through the marketing that influences our purchases and find the right information,
And more importantly,
What should we ask for and have a right to know?
Here are some points you should know especially if you seek to demand more information to understand the products, what they are made of and their impact on the environment.
As you would be aware, corporate sustainability is how a company operates in a responsible way, considering the environment, society, and the economy. Product sustainability on the other hand is specifically about how a company’s products or services are produced and the impact they have on the environment and society throughout their entire lifecycle.
An organization could have their image as a good corporate citizen, by contributing to philanthropy, community, and charities, yet produce highly polluting products and operate in a socially detrimental manner. Associating a good reputation to corporate brand image and representing the corporate image’s brand equity in product markets is a strategy often adopted by many. That is why it is important to question and demand information on a product or service specifically to understand what has gone into it and which sizable impacts they have created. A life cycle assessment (LCA), product environmental footprint analysis and an environmental product declaration (EPD) provides this information, measuring impacts through a rigorous process.
Environmental product declarations (EPD) play a crucial role in fostering transparency and enabling informed consumer choices in today’s marketplace. These declarations provide detailed and standardized information about a product’s composition, manufacturing processes, and environmental impact.
Other certification systems such as Ecolabelling help consumers to make sustainable purchasing decisions aligned with their values and preferences. By embracing and implementing robust product information declarations, companies demonstrate their commitment to accountability and environmental stewardship.
