Green Labeling--Does Anyone Care?

Greenbiz.com recently reported that most "green" labels aren't known by consumers they surveyed, let alone relied upon to make shopping decisions. And even the ones buyers are familiar with tend to be viewed with a degree of skepticism.

The article indicates that the best known "green" labels are the Recycling symbol, the federal government's Energy Star label, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Organic label. As you can see from the chart, the recognition percentage falls off pretty fast for the rest.

So what we have here is a failure to communicate, right? Whoever comes up with these labels has apparently dropped the PR ball.

Which leads to the issue of trust. Can you blame people for not trusting that a mere label slapped on a product means anything?

Of course, the problem could be that the label's meaning hasn't really been defined. Lack of definition when it comes to what makes a product really green is part of the reason I started this blog.

Still--with all this concern on the Federal Trade Commission's part about misleading consumers with bogus label claims and "greenwashing," one wonders--what's the point, if no one's noticing them to begin with?

Since 31 percent of those surveyed say they "always" buy Energy Star-labeled products, 20 percent say they "always" buy Recyclable, and after that the percentages of people who "always" buy based on a particular label plummet to single digits--well, maybe the FTC is looking out for those who "sometimes" buy, according to label?

I don't know, but I think we need to 1) come up with a standardized labeling system; 2) create definitions of exactly what the labels signify; and 3) tell people about it.

Is this really so hard?

Yes, actually, it is. If private industry alone does it, no one will completely trust them. If the non-profit sector handles it, you have to make sure every organization working on it is on the same page, which requires a well-organized and coordinated effort that may require time and money they don't have. State laws vary too widely, and I've worked for the feds and, believe me, if you leave it to them, it may never get done.

The Dow Jones Sustainability Index--Blue Chip or Junk?

Okay, so there are these things called the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes and they're supposed to track the financial performance of "the leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide." And apparently, they play some kind of role in providing "asset managers with reliable and objective benchmarks to manage sustainability portfolios."

So what does the hell does all that mean? Good question.

The environmental news organization Grist attempted to explore the significance, if any, of the DJSI, by posing the a series of questions about it and sustainability in general to two eco-expert sources--Joel Makower of GreenBiz.com and Auden Schendler of Aspen Skiing Co.

As usual, no black-and-white answers on this stuff. I tend to like Makower's responses, but I always dig a cynic, which he clearly is. (Although points go to Schendler for his trenchant response to ExxonMobil being named a "green" company by Forbes magazine.)

Makower also pretty much hits the nail on the head when he points out that, when it comes to evaluating corporate sustainability, "[r]ight now, there’s no standard way of assessing a company. . . . Someday there will be a global standard for a 'green' or 'sustainable' company (two different things, by the way). But for now, consumers are left to their own devices."

Well, if that's the case, doesn't that mean this index thing is pretty much a lot of hooey?