On the eve of Green Cricket’s first EcoLogo certification, we thought it would be a good idea to introduce loyal followers to what the EcoLogo certification means for them.

EcoLogo is  North America’s largest, most respected environmental standard and product certification mark, EcoLogo has established stringent standards for certain types of products, ensuring that only 20% of products in any of those product categories could meet the standards (http://www.environmentalchoice.com/en/criteria/).  In this way, they highlight the best of the best.
  Manufacturers can choose to submit their products for third party 
testing achieving EcoLogo certification if all the requirements are met.  
EcoLogo is one of several product certifications that are available to
 green products.  But as a consumer it’s important to be conscious of
 greenwashing, and be able to discern between fact and fiction on a
product label.

So what should you look for?  In a happy, green world, all products would be organic, biodegradable, derived from natural sources, have minimal packaging and be processed locally, for a start.  The challenge is that in an emerging market place, finding all of these characteristics in a single product is very challenging.  Most often you’re making tradeoffs, finding products that provide you with the best combinations.  For example – we still struggle to develop some ingredients organically and many products still contain some synthetic preservatives, because many natural ones just don’t work as well…yet.

Another challenge is how this information is communicated to consumers.
  There aren’t clear, universal definitions for many of the descriptions you’ll see on consumer products, and many manufacturers have taken some
pretty liberal interpretations of what a green product looks like.  Look for proof on their website, and check the ingredients as well.  Some
things that you’ll want to avoid include parabens, sodium lauryl
sulfate, fragrance, and propylene glycol.  Odds are good that a product that calls itself natural and but has nearly 100 ingredients, many of which you
can’t pronounce, probably isn’t all that natural (but that isn’t the only screen, nature makes some pretty crazy things too!).
  To ensure that your green products truly are green takes a little work –
 ensuring that your source is reputable is one step, and third party
certifications such as EcoLogo, or GreenSeal can be another.  Just be sure that the certification mark is legitimate…that’s another greenwashing trick - the seal that looks like a certification, but is really only a decoration.

Green Cricket chose to seek EcoLogo certification for their Foaming Hand Wash soap, because they were confident in the ingredients and manufacturing process, and that the product would sell in sufficient quantities to justify the costs of certification.  I am pleased to say that they did indeed receive EcoLogo certification, and the product will now bear the EcoLogo mark in the next production run. Congratulations Green Cricket!

Tags: Certification, EcoLogo, Green

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