Swedish Court forbids “net-zero” claims based on climate compensation

Green claims and key legislation

As consumers become increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of their purchasing, “green claims”, meaning claims suggesting certain environmental characteristics, are increasingly being used in advertising. The Swedish Marketing Act contains measures to uphold good practices in advertising. Such practices mean that advertising must be factual, truthful, and not misleading to the consumer. This is also applicable to the use of green claims in advertising.

The case: Net-zero climate footprint claim

In 2019, a Swedish dairy producer introduced a clearly visible green claim on the front and back of some of their product packaging for dairy. The green claim stated:

“NET-ZERO CLIMATE FOOTPRINT” (Swe: Netto noll klimatavtryck).

The green claim was accompanied with an explanation on the side of the packaging stating that these dairy products were climate compensated. Climate compensation is a method whereby one company buys “credits” from another company that reduces carbon from the atmosphere (such as planting trees) to offset carbon being released into the atmosphere (such as producing/transporting dairy). The credits that the dairy producer bought ensured that the products with the green claim packaging would be fully climate compensated in 100 years.

Guidance from the Swedish Market Court

The Swedish Market Court found that the green claim on the product was misleading for several reasons.

• “Net” was written in a small print while “zero climate footprint” was written in large print making it appear as if the product has no climate footprint rather than being compensated for,
• an explanation of the green claim was obscurely placed on the side of the packaging making it easy to miss in its entirety, and
• a time horizon of 100 years makes the claim unverifiable and difficult to understand for the average consumer.

The last point is especially important. The Swedish Market Court emphasized that “net-zero climate footprint” would be understood by the average consumer as a product not producing carbon emissions at all or having already been fully compensated for – not a product that will be compensated for in 100 years. The packaging of the dairy producer was therefore found as misleading to consumers.

Conclusions

• Be clear and specific, don’t use generalized or vague claims – if consumers risk misunderstanding the claim, adjust the claim or make a clear reference to an explanation;
• Have robust, scientific evidence for your claim – document assessments and decisions prior to using a green claim as you must verify it. Scientific uncertainty will mean your claim cannot be verified; and
• Meet the expectations of consumers – the impression after an initial reading by consumers should correspond to what the average consumer interprets by the claim.

Want to stay on top of the developments within the Green Claims field? See our Green Claims Tracker to ensure that you stay up to date with the latest development across several jurisdictions.