WFA Issues Guidance On Green Claims

Companies that make environmental or "green" claims generally refer to the FTC's Green Guides for guidance on what they can and cannot say and what substantiation they need. At this point, though, the Green Guides are more than ten years old and they don't clearly answer many of the questions advertisers have today. Although the FTC has indicated that it plans to review and update the Green Guides, we don't know when a new version will be out.

In the meantime, the World Federation of Advertisers – with the help from the International Council for Advertising Self-Regulation, the European Advertising Standards Alliance, and experts from the UK's Advertising Standards Authority – recently issued Global Guidance on Environmental Claims. The Guidance is centered around six key principles, many of which are illustrated with case studies from various countries.