Greenwashing Bottled Water

Corpobligation: Misleading ads can hurt not only the brand but distract from the efforts at improving sustainability.

Can civil society hold corporations accountable for greenwashing? If the current complaint against Nestlé Waters North America by Canadian environmental NGOs (Friends of the Earth Canada and Ecojustice along with the Polaris Institute, the Council of Canadians, and Wellington Water Watchers) succeeds, the answer will be yes!

The complaint cites a full-page advertisement that appeared in the Globe and Mail in October, which contained a series of statements, including that:

• “most water bottles avoid landfill sites and are recycled”;
• "bottled water is the most environmentally responsible consumer product in the world”; and,
• “Nestlé Pure Life is a Healthy, Eco-Friendly Choice”. 

The complaint is based on contraventions of the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards and new guidelines that have been set by Canada’s Competition Bureau and the Canadian Standards Association:

"Based on our review of the representations made by Nestlé Waters in this advertisement, it is clear that they are not supported by fact – we believe this is an outrageous example of greenwashing," says Beatrice Olivastri, Chief Executive Officer, Friends of the Earth. "The truth is that many water bottles are not being recycled, a phenomena that Nestlé Waters itself - in direct contradiction to its own advertisement – admits in its 2008 Corporate Citizenship Report." Olivastri points out that Nestlé Waters states in the report that many of its own bottles end up in the solid waste-stream and that many of them are not recycled even though they are recyclable. (See http://www.nestle-watersna.com/pdf/Nestle_Corporate_Citizenship_Report_Final.pdf, at page 37). 

Relevant sections of the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards

Section 1(a) of the Code states:
(a) Advertisements must not contain inaccurate or deceptive claims,
statements, illustrations or representations, either direct or implied,
with regard to a product or service. In assessing the truthfulness and
accuracy of a message, the concern is not with the intent of the sender
or precise legality of the presentation. Rather, the focus is on the
message as received or perceived, i.e. the general impression
conveyed by the advertisement.

(b) Advertisements must not omit relevant information in a manner that,
in the result, is deceptive.

Analysis of ENGO Complaints

1. “most water bottles avoid landfill sites and are recycled” - this is objectively debateable. It appears misleading on its face because it is wrong. In its report, Nestlé Waters states that many of its own bottles end up in the waste-stream, stressing that “[t]oday, almost all beverage bottles are recyclable, but most are not recycled…” and that “[w]hile our plastic beverage containers are recyclable, many end up in the solid-waste stream…” The report adds that “[e]ven though our PET and HDPE bottles are 100% recyclable, many still end up in the waste stream…”(NGO Complaint p. 6 ). Given that Nestle contradicts itself, this complaint will succeed.
2. "bottled water is the most environmentally responsible consumer product in the world” - better than bread or hemp? This also implies that the bottled water is environmentally beneficial. The extraction of water from aquifers and transport for miles and miles seems to be less environmentally friendly than tap water. So this complaint is also powerful.
3. Nestlé Pure Life is a Healthy, Eco-Friendly Choice” - this pleasingly vague claim is probably the least attackable because it defies definitions or testing: water is healthy, eco-friendly is fairly meaningless. However, the vagueness in the ad, which conveys a  "green" message that is likely deceptive, makes this complaint strong.

Bottled up frustration: Context and Results

This complaint arose in part in the context of wider debates on bottled water's environmental impacts and bans, and specifically the successful Toronto ban on bottled water sales on city property (Dec. 3, 2008 - CBC):

Lobbyists for the bottled water industry tried to delay the ban. But Coun. Gord Perks said any move to postpone the change would have been irresponsible and unnecessary.

"It is astonishing to me that people would actually argue in this council that there is some great privation out there, some tremendous risk that we are creating, some lack of freedom of choice in terms of access to bottled water. Shame on you if you fall for that argument."

Restricting sales of bottled water will likely make consumers think about their choices. But the wider implications of the NGOs advertising complaint is that corporations need to be straightforward and sincere in their environmental work or face consequences (stay tuned to see if this will be a slap on the wrist or something more significant). Nestle has worked on making their processes more efficient and more sustainable and their ads could have stuck to emphasizing these improvements.

More information

For more information, contact:
Dylan Penner, the Council of Canadians, 613-795-8685, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Joe Cressy, Polaris Institute, 613-769-7118, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Hugh Wilkins, Staff Lawyer, Ecojustice Canada, 416-368-7533 Ext. 34, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Mark Goldberg, Wellington Water Watchers, 519-766-1000, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

See full press release & The Full Complaint against Nestle

NESTLE WATERS NORTH AMERICA

Contact:
Press Office
By post:
Nestlé Waters North America
777 West Putnam Avenue
CT 06830 Greenwich
USA
By telephone:
+ 1 203 863 0111
By fax:
+1 203 863 0215

---