UK: Unilever to Be Investigated for 'Greenwashing'

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Facts

  • The UK's Competition and Markets Authority said Tuesday that it would investigate environmentally-friendly 'green' claims made by consumer goods maker Unilever about some of its essential household products.1
  • The watchdog argued that Unilever's use of colors, imagery, and language could have potentially misled shoppers by overstating the products' environmental friendliness and making them appear more natural.2
  • Although the Authority didn't mention any specific Unilever brand, the watchdog claimed it had evidence that raises concerns 'about how Unilever presents certain products as environmentally friendly.'3
  • According to the UK government, the regulator would obtain further evidence and, depending on the findings, ask the company to fix its operations, initiate legal action, or close the case.4
  • The Authority's investigation into Unilever, which makes Dove soap, is part of a wider probe launched into corporate greenwashing in January.1
  • Meanwhile, Unilever said it was 'surprised and disappointed' with the CMA's announcement and refuted that its green claims 'are in any way misleading.'5

Sources: 1Reuters, 2BBC News, 3The telegraph, 4Gov.uk and 5Guardian.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by This is money. In recent years, Unilever has gone to extreme extents to burnish its do-gooder image. But the company's PR tactics have raised eyebrows among investors as well as environmentalists who noticed that not everything was as rosy — or 'green' — as the consumer giant claimed. The UK probe will expose the harms of greenwashing with this company.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Marketing week. Unilever is among the few global corporate giants ahead of the curve in being environmentally and socially conscious. It has consistently informed the buyers of its varied products about their ecological aspects. The firm is a founding signatory of the UK Plastics Pact, which seeks to handle the problem of plastic waste effectively. Unilever is proud of its authentic corporate sustainability.