Sustainability continues to be a hot topic in the fashion industry, both in ads and in lawsuits related to those ads. Last month, a plaintiff filed a proposed class action against H&M arguing that the company makes various false claims about the sustainability of its products. The lawsuit seems to be prompted by a June
Court Dismisses Lawsuit Against Allbirds Over Green Claims
Last year, we posted about a lawsuit against Allbirds alleging (among other things) that the company’s environmental claims – including claims about its “sustainable” practices, the “low carbon footprint” of its shoes, and its other “environmentally friendly” initiatives – are false and misleading. This week, the US District Court for the Southern District of New
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.
Here’s a summary:
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NAD Continues to Focus on Green Claims
Most NAD challenges are initiated by competitors, but NAD can also initiate its own inquiries as part of its mission to independently monitor national ads for truthfulness and accuracy. Over the past few months, NAD has initiated inquiries into green claims made by Georgia-Pacific and Everlane. Last week, NAD announced a decision
UK’s ASA Roasts Oatly’s Climate-Friendly Claims
If you’re among the over 40% of U.S. consumers who vowed to change how you eat in the new year, fitting into pants that don’t have elastic waistbands may be one of numerous motivators. For many consumers, climate considerations are increasingly among the dietary priorities, and 2022 looks likely to bring plates filled with climate-friendly
NY Lawmakers Introduce Sustainability Requirements for Fashion Industry
Last week, New York lawmakers announced a bill aimed at imposing sustainability reporting requirements on the fashion industry. If passed, the Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act would generally require major fashion retailers to map their supply chains, make various disclosures on their websites, and commit to reducing their environmental impact.
The law
Where to Find More Info on the FTC’s Top Rules for 2022
Last week, Jessica Rich wrote about the FTC’s rulemaking plans for 2022. Make sure you read that post for a detailed analysis of what the Commission is planning. As we looked at which of those topics have generated the most interest on Ad Law Access recently, we wanted to point you to
New NAD Case Addresses Green Claims in Fashion Industry – Part 2
In a post last week, we looked at NAD’s review of Everlane’s green claims relating to the company’s use of recycled plastic in its products and its aspirational goals to remove virgin plastic from its entire supply chain by 2021. In this post, we’ll look at what NAD had to say about Everlane’s “Safer
New NAD Case Addresses Green Claims in Fashion Industry: Part 1
As fashion companies begin to make more claims about what they are doing to help the environment, they need to make sure they’re in good position to support those claims with strong evidence. We previously posted about a pending lawsuit against Allbirds involving its carbon emission claims. In this post, we’ll start to look at
California Imposes New Restrictions on Recyclability Claims
Last week, California’s Governor signed a law that will likely impose significant limitations on companies’ abilities to make recyclability claims or use the popular “chasing arrows” symbol in California.
The law states that using a “chasing arrows symbol, a chasing arrows symbol surrounding a resin identification code, or
any other symbol or statement” on a