Marketing Eco (me)

Eco Scout has been watching for updates to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) "Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims" and noticed that the FTC updated eCFR Title 16, Part 260 on July 1, 2009.

A digital comparison of the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (e-CFR) version dated June 18, 2009 and the current version dated July 1, 2009 revealed that only the date of the e-CFR was changed. The remainder of the e-CFR’s content is the same from one version to the next. Stay tuned! Eco Scout will stay on the trail of this e-CFR and keep you in the loop regarding all future FTC changes big and small. Even though this recent update by the FTC wasn’t much to squawk about, as the FTC continues to hold hearings and gather information we expect to see changes in the regulation of environmental marketing claims. TITLE 16–Commercial Practices CHAPTER I–FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION SUBCHAPTER B–GUIDES AND TRADE PRACTICE RULES PART 260–GUIDES FOR THE USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETING CLAIMS Try one of these easy ways to stay connected and connect your friends and colleagues to all Eco Scout’s finds on Marketing Eco: Click "Subscribe" in the lower-right corner to receive the Marketing Eco RSS feed via your favorite feed service. Click on the corresponding link in the upper-right corner to follow Marketing Eco on Twitter, Facebook, or Myspace. Share Eco Scout’s Marketing Eco updates with your friends and colleagues via your favorite social media or email, or save us to your favorites using the "Share / Save" button below.

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The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has published "Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims" to define fair green marketing practices and reduce unintentional greenwashing, outright deception, and overstatements regarding environmental attributes.

For those of you who want certainty about making environmental claims, it’s critical to work with marketing and advertising firms that are familiar with this information and on top of future updates. 

Because the FTC will continue to gather information, hold hearings, and update these guides as needed, Marketing Eco will keep a watch on developments with this e-CFR.

Without further ado, here’s the scoop from the FTC:

The guides in this part represent administrative interpretations of laws administered by the Federal Trade Commission for the guidance of the public in conducting its affairs in conformity with legal requirements. These guides specifically address the application of Section 5 of the FTC Act to environmental advertising and marketing practices. They provide the basis for voluntary compliance with such laws by members of industry. Conduct inconsistent with the positions articulated in these guides may result in corrective action by the Commission under Section 5 if, after investigation, the Commission has reason to believe that the behavior falls within the scope of conduct declared unlawful by the statute.

These guides apply to environmental claims included in labeling, advertising, promotional materials and all other forms of marketing, whether asserted directly or by implication, through words, symbols, emblems, logos, depictions, product brand names, or through any other means, including marketing through digital or electronic means, such as the Internet or electronic mail. The guides apply to any claim about the environmental attributes of a product, package or service in connection with the sale, offering for sale, or marketing of such product, package or service for personal, family or household use, or for commercial, institutional or industrial use."

e-CFR Data is current as of June 18, 2009
TITLE 16–Commercial Practices
CHAPTER I–FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
SUBCHAPTER B–GUIDES AND TRADE PRACTICE RULES
PART 260–GUIDES FOR THE USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETING CLAIMS

Eco Scout, Fair Green Marketing Practices Eco Scout, Fair Green Marketing Practices