In the realm of sustainability communication, you quickly encounter the terms greenwashing, greenwishing, and greenhushing. As a company, you might be afraid of making mistakes in these areas and thereby damaging your reputation or brand. In this article, we explain what greenwashing, greenwishing, and greenhushing are and how to communicate about sustainability correctly.
Want to know more about how to communicate clearly and correctly about sustainability? Read this article: https://nl.hhc.earth/knowledge-base/how-to-communicate-your-sustainable-progress
Or download our checklist on how to communicate sustainability: https://www.hhc.earth/knowledge-base/download-our-checklist-on-communicating-sustainability
What is greenwashing?
Greenwashing means that a company presents itself or a product as more sustainable (or less polluting) than it actually is. The organisation may do this by omitting certain information or exaggerating. Consumers thus receive a misleading picture of the company’s sustainability performance.
Lately, there have been numerous news stories about companies being called out for greenwashing. Just last week, the Dutch Advertising Code Commission reprimanded MSC Cruises for ads depicting cruising as a sustainable holiday option.
Climate organisations Fossielvrij NL, Advocates for the Future en Reclamejagers have therefore filed a lawsuit against MSC. Cruising is one of the most polluting forms of travel; according to Fossil Free NL, cruising is even twice as polluting as flying. A cruise ship has extremely high fuel consumption/harmful emissions, and its polluting impact is noticeable both on land and at sea.
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2539333-msc-cruises-schuldig-aan-greenwashing-moet-klimaatclaims-schrappen
The EU fights against greenwashing: The Green Claims Directive
When companies communicate inaccurately about their sustainability performance, consumers cannot make informed choices when purchasing these products/services. To protect consumers, the EU is working on the Green Claims Directive. This directive specifically targets consumer deception around the sustainability of products.
According to this directive, it will no longer be permissible to use vague terms such as natural, eco, or environmentally friendly on products. The directive also requires that all information about the environmental impact of a product (such as lifespan, reparability, composition, production, and use) must be substantiated by reliable sources, such as a lifecycle assessment (LCA).
What is greenwishing?
Greenwishing is closely related to greenwashing, and the line between them is sometimes thin. Greenwishing involves an organisation hoping or aspiring for a more sustainable future and communicating about these aspirations, but only as a vision or ambition. There are insufficient or no actions taken to actually realize this future. Thus, the organisation touts attributes that it cannot yet, or may never, fulfil.
Sometimes there is a lack of motivation or a sense of urgency to turn the plan into action. It may also be that an organisation cannot take the necessary steps because it lacks the resources or strategy. But whatever the reason, greenwishing is misleading, and being called out on it can lead to negative publicity for your brand.
The Dutch Authority for Consumers & Markets has included a section in their Guidelines for Sustainability Claims about how to properly communicate about your sustainability ambitions without misleading consumers.
According to the guidelines, you may only leverage sustainable ambitions if you have a concrete plan on how to achieve these ambitions, and you must have already started, or be about to start, this plan. Furthermore, sustainability ambitions should only be used for general communication, such as on your website, and not for product-level expressions (such as on the label).
What is greenhushing?
Greenhushing is essentially the opposite of greenwashing; companies deliberately withhold information about their sustainable actions or performance. Why would they do this? Ironically, sometimes it is because they are afraid of being accused of greenwashing. They prefer to say nothing at all, so at least they don't do anything wrong, and they avoid lawsuits or negative publicity.
Xavier Font, Professor of Sustainable Marketing at the University of Surrey, even stated in the Washington Post that the Green Claims Directive could inadvertently lead to greenhushing. And this doesn't just apply to companies within the EU; the directive will apply to all organisations that bring a product to the European market. Font said, “If I was a company in the U.S., I would definitely be greenhushing.”
Other reasons for greenhushing may include companies feeling that they have not yet made sufficient progress; many companies prefer to communicate only about final results, not about the steps being taken along the way. This also applies to progress regarding sustainable performance. A company might also fear that stakeholders have higher or different expectations, and therefore decide not to disclose their sustainable progress yet.
The rise of greenhushing is unfortunate; because when organisations remain silent about their sustainable achievements or ambitions, society might unconsciously get the impression that the status quo is less sustainable than it actually is.
And if companies keep their sustainability ambitions to themselves, they also miss the opportunity to inspire other businesses. Ultimately, companies often look to their market peers: what are competitors doing? If companies remain silent about their sustainable actions, nobody knows that these actions have been taken. As long as companies do not communicate about this, such progress remains hidden.
So, our call to action is; do communicate about your sustainability efforts. Even if you have not yet reached your final destination, the journey itself can be informative for other businesses. Be a role model for others in your industry. After all, a good example tends to inspire followers, as companies do not want to lag behind their competitors.
Conclusion
Whether it's greenwashing, greenwishing, or greenhushing, companies falter by failing to communicate fully, transparently, or accurately. While sustainability performances are exaggerated in greenwashing and greenwishing, they are swept under the rug in greenhushing.
All these forms of incomplete or incorrect communication are harmful. They harm the perception people have of your organisation, and more broadly, they affect societal perceptions of sustainability.
Are you looking for data and proof of your product's sustainability? Schedule an introductory meeting with us and find out how a lifecycle assessment (LCA) can provide the insights you need.
Source
https://kpmg.com/us/en/media/news/greenwashing-esg-traps-2023.html
