The Finnish Consumer Ombudsman calls for accuracy in environmental marketing

When environmental claims are misleadingly broad?

In the latest decisions, the Director of Consumer Division of the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority, the Finnish Consumer Ombudsman examined misleading environmental claims on the websites of Marimekko Corporation and Stockmann Plc. The online shops gave a misleading impression of their responsibility, sustainability and environmental friendliness by phrases such as "More Sustainable" and "Responsible choice". In addition, Stockmann used a green leaf symbol in its websites.

According to the Consumer Ombudsman, the environmental claims made were too vague and their content had not been explained in connection with the claims. The Consumer Ombudsman clarified that if such claims are made, they must be specified in their immediate context and must be made clear to a consumer at first glance what a concrete environmental claim is based on. The consumer cannot be expected to seek clarification for a vague environmental claim on another website.

In addition, regarding the green leaf symbol used by Stockmann, the Consumer Ombudsman stated that marketing must be designed in such a way that the consumer cannot unnoticeably skip past the clarification of the symbol or expression and it should not be necessary to search for information behind long link chains.

Key takeaways

If following green claims are used in marketing, their content must be explained in connection with the claims:

1. Ecological, green, sustainable, responsible, conscious, or environmentally friendly,
2. Images, colours, videos or graphics that emphasise environmental friendliness,
3. Various unofficial signs, logos or symbols of environmental friendliness.

Next steps in environmental marketing

The European Commission presented its proposal for a Directive on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (the “Green Claims Directive”) on 22 March 2023. The proposal supports the objectives of the European Green Deal and it targets green washing and misleading environmental claims by setting minimum requirements in B2C commercial practices. The European Parliament adopted the Directive on 17 January 2024. What is missing is the final approval from the Council, after which the Directive will be published in the Official Journal. Member states will have 24 months to implement the Directive into national law.

The Directive and environmental marketing affects a wide range of sectors and creates a need to review the environmental claims used and potentially update such marketing. If you are uncertain, it is better to involve local counsel given the attention this topic is currently receiving.