GREENWASHING: IT'S NOT ALL GLAD

In today's world, it is not unusual for businesses to make claims about the environmental benefits of their services or products to consumers- it is however important to ensure that those claims are accurate. "Greenwashing" is a term, which generally speaking, refers to the making of false or misleading environmental claims, such as through advertising, marketing, packaging or representations. In fact, the English Oxford dictionary defines "greenwashing" as "the creation or propagation of an unfounded or misleading environmentalist image".¹

This issue was recently highlighted in the first civil penalty proceeding by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ("ACCC") in the Federal Court of Australia ("FCA") against Clorox Australia Pty Ltd ("Clorox") for contraventions relating to "greenwashing" and for which the FCA ordered Clorox to pay penalties totalling $8.25 million.²