Green Ratings® an easy entry-level step for businesses to validate green claims
- Susan Harris
- May 27
- 3 min read
Crack-downs on Green Claims
Recent crack-downs on green claims in New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Europe and in the United States have highlighted the need for businesses to be careful about unsupported, generalised green claims they may make regarding their organisations, projects, products and services.
Broad terms like "eco-friendly", "environmentally-friendly", "sustainable", and "green [product name]" will not pass the legal tests described in legislation for green claims in New Zealand or overseas. Attempts to pass off products, services, projects, and businesses as "sustainable" using general "green" terms like these without scientific support can result in exposure by consumer activists, legal action, significant loss of reputation, and heavy fines.
Internationally, greenwashing fines have ranged from $USD430,500 to $USD34.69 billion (!!!) (CleanHub 2024). In Australia, LGSS Pty Ltd, an Active Super trustee, was fined $AUD 10.5 million for misleading disclosure regarding its investments in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) funds. In New Zealand recently, the Financial Markets Authority censured Pathfinder Asset Management for misleading statements about the nature of its KiwiSaver Fund ethical investments. These statements regarding animal testing and fossil fuels occurred between October 2021 and May 2024 in their advertisements on social media, and on their website.
Missing - An Entry-Level Green Credential
Green claims must be supported by verifiable scientific evidence provided by a suitably-qualified scientific authority. Technically, there are several ways to do this depending on the size, scope, scale, and environmental impacts of business operations. Many current green credential schemes are complex and confusing, and require multiple registrations across different countries. What has been missing is a simple, entry-level, easy-to-understand, yet robust green credential that any business can use as a start point for supporting and promoting their green claims.
Familiar with financial credit ratings? These are easily recognised and updated annually. Clear indicators of financial status.
Green Ratings® as an easy, accessible green claim validation
GreenXperts has followed this credit rating model by creating an "entry level" green rating tool as an easy, obvious, and robust first step green credential for businesses, especially small to medium size businesses (SME). GreenXperts are recognised sustainability consultants with over 35 years' experience in numerous industries in Australasia and beyond. Our "Green Ratings®" can provide clients with validation of green claims relatively cheaply on an annual basis, with room for continuous improvement to a better rating as sustainability practices mature.
Technically, we use a weighted attributes score system to rate an activity from G (GOOD) to GG (VERY GOOD) to GGG (EXCELLENT). There are customised rating protocols for different activities, see a project example here. A Green Rating® can apply to a business, organisation, project, product or service. Green Rating® Certificates and Score Forms are publicly available. They can be viewed for free on the Green Ratings® Registry maintained by GreenXperts. Green Ratings® are available on an annual or monthly subscription basis, last for a year, and can be maintained, renewed, or upgraded in following years.
Essential Business Branding into the 21st Century
Now it's easy to get an entry-level, affordable robust green credential with Green Ratings® at GreenXperts. Accessible for everyone!
Promote your Green Rating® into today's sustainability-sensitive markets, and win the nearly 10% margin (PwC 2024) that genuinely sustainable operators enjoy. Your Green Rating® is essential branding into the 21st Century, as sustainability-savvy Millennial, Generation X, and Generation Z shoppers increasingly dominate public and private markets.
Comments