A recent study determines that 60% of the consumers globally choose sustainability as an important purchasing parameter and that more than 1/3 of the population on average is willing to pay more for sustainable products and that this group will accept an increased price of 25% in average.
The companies, therefore, have a vast incentive to market environmentally friendly and sustainable products, but this also entails a risk that products and services are presented as more environmentally friendly and sustainable than they really are.
As a consequence hereof, the Consumer ombudsman launched a quick guide on 22 December 2021 for the purpose of affecting misleading marketing of environmentally friendly and sustainable activities or products. The new guidance is expected to be published in 2022.
The Consumer ombudsman’s quick guide
In the quick guide, the Consumer ombudsman differentiates between general and concrete statements according to which general statements are subject to strict documentation requirements.
The general statements: ”green”, ”climate-friendly” etc. must be documented by an independent life cycle analysis of the product, and the product must be ”best in class” as these statements are considered to indicate that the product is a whole is ”climate-friendly”. On the other hand, it is easier to document statements such as: ”30% less CO2 emission” as such statements refer to specific climate or environmental benefits of the product. Companies must at the same time pay attention to the fact that also the instruments used (pictures, colors, items, etc.) are part of the overall assessment of whether marketing is misleading.
If a marketing campaign is found to be in breach of the Danish Marketing Practices Act, this can lead to sanctions ranging from injunctions and prohibitions to fines and imprisonment, and both competitors and environmental organizations can pursue the matter both through complaints to authorities or through court action.
Further information can be found in the Consumer ombudsman’s quick guide which can be found here.
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