How to spot greenwashing — Greenwashing Part 2 (YouTube Shorts Video)

Whether you are an eco-conscious consumer or not, you need to know what greenwashing (or elegantly called “eco-friendly brainwashing” by a friend Ajay Malik) looks like. We covered this in Part 1 of this series. Didn’t catch that? Click here!

Now that you know what greenwashing might look like, you also need to know how to verify if it is a legitimate marketing campaign or a case of greenwashing.

Here are 3 easy ways to spot greenwashing

1. Look for an ecolabel.
2. Is the ecolabel real? Verify it on the Ecolabel Index.
3. Look through the company’s website for numbers, list of ingredients and processes that backs their claims.

Look for an ecolabel

Is the packaging green? Do you see buzzwords like “Certified Green”, “Eco-friendly” and “Natural”? Then also look for an ecolabel. If you don’t see one……..

Is the ecolabel real or fake? Verify it

If you do see one, you can check if it is real or fake. Go on the Ecolabel index website and do a quick search. This website tracks over 400 verified ecolabels from around the world. If you don’t find the ecolabel on the product here, it is probably fake.

Look through the company’s website

Truly sustainable companies prominently display numbers, list of ingredients and processes to back its claims.

If you don’t find proof of these claims, or if you find vague things like “We are committed to sustainability” with no proof, or if you have click deep into the website before finding something, there’s a good chance the company is greenwashing.

Keep this in mind the next time you are in the supermarket, and you won’t fall for this gimmick. Be an eco-intelligent shopper!