Well, actually no. And we are not the only ones who think so. The European Commission published on March 22, 2023, its draft Directive on Green Claims to "prevent companies from making misleading statements about the environmental merits of their products." This movement is also present in the USA (Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guides) and the United Kingdom (Green Claims Code). Because companies making "green claims" must justify them according to a standard methodology to assess their environmental impact. The European Parliament also gave its approval on May 5, 2023, for this draft Directive. Across the Atlantic, the Federal Trade Commission is also making progress on the subject and has published Green Guides to regulate companies’ environmental claims.

There are 200 active environmental labels in the EU and more than 450 active worldwide, in addition to 80 widely used reporting methods for carbon emissions alone. Some of these methods and initiatives are reliable, others are not. Some are funded by the brands themselves, gathered within coalitions, which raises questions about their impartiality. Especially when considering the positive impact of a "green" garment on purchasing behavior.

With greenwashing: companies give a false impression of their environmental impact or benefits. Greenwashing misleads market players and does not benefit companies that make the effort to green their products and activities. It even leads to a less green economy.

The European Union and regulators have a role in protecting consumers. But how can one navigate the forest of labels and certifications? Fortunately, things are evolving at the regulatory level, and the key is to propose a unique and regulated method: the PEF.

Statements regarding companies' environmental performance must be reliable, comparable, and verifiable. This will collectively help us make more sustainable decisions.

There are private certifications such as the Higg Index, for example. It was created in 2011 by a group of major industry brands, including H&M, Walmart, Nike, Levi's, and Patagonia. It is maintained by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), which has about 250 member brands. It has been widely used by the fashion industry to assess the sustainability of materials used in their products. It was a great initiative from the fashion sector but was criticized for its lack of impartiality.

So much so that in June 2022, the Norwegian Consumer Authority (NCA) banned the use of the Higg Material Sustainability Index (MSI), judging that the marketing claims were considered inaccurate (Article in French / Article in English). And the Dutch regulator forced brands to modify or stop using “sustainability” claims on their clothing and websites (publication by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM)).