If all ealse fails, don't bother wearing deodorant.
At least that's the thought of junior Desiree Hatton after she became tired of being greenwashed by deceitful companies. After realizing that her "natural" deodorant was not as natural as she would have preferred, Hatton is trying to figure out her next choice - but is still worried about being greenwashed again.
Greenwashing is the idea that companies are marketing their products as "green," when actually they are not environmentally friendly. Of all the products that are labeled as "green," 98 percent are actually greenwashed, according to TreeHugger. Students such as Hatton have been angered by these false advertisements because they have been tricked into buying a product that they do not want to support.
The companies are just trying to cover up a bigger problem, Hatton said.
"The companies say, 'Look, we've gone green, buy this green cleaning product,' when actually the product is still from a company that is polluting the earth with dioxin," she said.
So, it's like people are 'taking steps to become more environmentally friendly and have better practices, but by buying these greenwashed products they're still polluting, Hatton said.
She started buying sustainable hygiene products in order to lessen her impact on the environment, she said. However, she realized she was being greenwashed after reading the label of the "all-natural" products she bought.
"You buy a lotion because it says 'all-natural,' and you get home and it's still got petrochemicals in it and all these ingredients that you can't even pronounce," Hatton said.
But there are reasons for the confusion.
This problem occurs due to lack of government regulation on what companies can advertise in relation to the health and environmental benefits of a product, said Angela Casler, adjunct faculty in the department of marketing. The Environmental Protection Agency is working to determine broad, nationwide laws to create standards for labeling.
Casler thinks these regulations are what the country needs in order to provide consumer confidence in labels, she said.
"You can have very responsible company using just the word, 'organic,'" Casler said. "Then you could have another company that says, 'We'll just capture that market, and slap the organic label on there because there's nobody here to tell me that I can't do that.' And they absolutely can."
Still, the definition of "greenwashing" and the criticism of companies all depend on who is asked, she said.
There are some people who will not consider any company to be entirely green, no matter what products they market, or what they do to help the environment, Casler said. On the other hand, she thinks that companies that are willing to make progress toward being green deserve acknowledgement for their goals.
"Oftentimes we may call something 'greenwashing,' but that business may very well be on the right path to where they need to go," she said.
Advice is available for people who are trying to avoid being greenwashed.
People need to make sure that they do their research on the product in order to make an informed decision, said Gavin Dixon, program assistant for Environmental Action and Resource Center. It is important to know what each label means, and which labels are authentic and certified.
"The best way is to be a conscious consumer and pay attention to what you're getting," Dixon said. "It can be a little time consuming, but do your research and make an informed decision. Don't just pick one because it's cheaper."
Therese Marucci can be reached at
tmarucci@theorion.com
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