Draft - Proposed Adoption of New Environmental Labelling and Advertising Guidelines

Guidelines

July 31, 2001

---

In 1991, the Competition Bureau issued the publication Principles and Guidelines for Environmental Labelling and Advertising (PGELA) in response to a number of industry and consumer concerns about the increase in misleading environmental claims in the marketplace. The guide discouraged the use of unsubstantiated and vague claims, and attempted to give guidance on the proper usage of certain common environmental claims such as "biodegradable," "recyclable," and "recycled."

In addition to its value as an aid in assisting manufacturers to provide meaningful and accurate environmental information, the document was used by the Competition Bureau as a policy guideline for assessing complaints of misleading environmental labelling and advertising relative to the Competition Act and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act.

In November 1993, the Canadian Standards Association (which currently operates under the name CSA International) published its Guideline on Environmental Labelling, which included the PGELA as an appendix.

Reflecting the same concerns about the worldwide lack of consistent guidance for environmental marketing claims, a sub-committee of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committee on Environmental Management Systems (ISO 14000 series) also began work in 1993.

One of the series standards, ISO 14021 Environmental Labels and Declarations & #45; Self Declared Environmental Claims, is similar to the 1993 Canadian standard except it represents the international community's input with respect to the continuing evolution of guidance in the use of self declared environmental marketing claims for both products and services. ISO14021 was finalized in September 1999.

Thirty-seven of forty two participating countries voted in favour of adopting the standard. As a result, CSA International initiated consultations on behalf of the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) to adopt it as a National Standard of Canada. In March 2000 the standard was adopted by the SCC without modification. CAN/CSA-ISO 14021-00 replaces the CSA International's 1993 document.

CSA International Publishes A New Standard

CAN/CSA-ISO 14021-00 has 18 specific requirements about aspects of environmental claims, including requirements that they:

• be accurate and not misleading
• be substantiated and verified, including the use of accepted test methods and having documentary evidence available to all who ask
• be specific as to the environmental benefit claimed
• take into consideration all relevant aspects of the product life cycle
• be specific when making comparative claims
• be reassessed and updated to reflect changes in circumstances which might affect the accuracy of the claim.

The standard also covers the general use of symbols in the making of environmental claims, in addition to specific guidance as to the use of the mobius loop. As well, the standard provides details on the usage of 12 selected claims that were deemed to be the most commonly found in the marketplace, these being grouped in three categories: manufacturing and distribution, product use and product disposal.

The standard differs from the PGELA in that it more accurately reflects what will be accepted in most industrialized countries as the basic guidance on the use of environmental terms and symbols such as the mobius loop, recyclable, recycled, biodegradeable and compostable as well as on the use of substance free claims. It is also more comprehensive and up-to-date than the PGELA as new sections have been added on the use of comparative claims, waste reduction claims, claims of "designed for disassembly" and recovered energy claims. Unlike the PGELA, the standard also provides evaluation methodologies for the various claims.

Invitation to Provide Comments

The Commissioner of Competition, who administers both the Competition Act and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, proposes to withdraw the current PGELA and encourage the use of the CAN/CSA-ISO 14021-00 standard as it provides an internationally harmonized and more comprehensive guidance to manufacturers and importers.

The Commissioner proposes to take account of the direction and clarification provided in CAN/CSA-ISO 14021-00 when evaluating environmental claims under the Competition Act and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act. Environmental claims made in accordance with this document would not likely raise questions under the legislation. Acceptance of any claim will only be taken following a complete review of the relevant facts, but final determination of acceptability will rest with the appropriate court of law.

Adherence to the standard will also give consumers assurance that their purchasing decisions are based on verifiable, accurate and comparable information. Further, companies are given an incentive to continuously improve their environmental performance when ensured of a level playing field, free of misleading claims. The Commissioner believes it important for companies to ensure their internal compliance programs be capable of preventing misleading representations and the adoption of CAN/CSA-ISO 14021-00 is a strong move in that direction.

The Commissioner invites all interested parties to provide comments on this proposal to Suzanne MacPhee, of the Competition Bureau, by October 15, 2001. Responses will be made public and posted on our Web site unless it is specifically requested that they be kept confidential.

If any interested party would like to obtain a copy of the proposed guidelines, has any general questions or would like information on how best to comply with the Competition Act and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, please contact the Competition Bureau Information Centre at 819-997-4282 or toll-free at 1-800-348-5358.

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency. We contribute to the prosperity of Canadians by protecting and promoting competitive markets and enabling informed consumer choice.

Contact:

Suzanne MacPhee
Fax: 819-953-2557
E-mail: macphee.suzanne@cb-bc.gc.ca

Address:

Competition Bureau
17th floor, Place du Portage I
50 Victoria St.
Hull, Quebec  K1A 0C9