Sustainability has become a must-have for many consumers, but navigating the market in search of legitimately eco-friendly products can be daunting. Certifications and ecolabels can help narrow down product choices.

  • Third-party certifications measure environmental performance in a variety of categories, from water conservation to the use of PFAS and other chemical components. They can be managed by government agencies, nonprofit organizations or other entities.
  • Ecolabels are logos on product packaging or marketing materials that indicate a certification or membership to help consumers quickly and easily identify products that meet specific environmental performance criteria.

Certifications and labels offer an easy way to address sustainability, but not all ecolabels are created equal. With more than 460 ecolabels in the global marketplace, figuring out which ones can be trusted takes some research.

EPA Recommendations of Specifications, Standards and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has analyzed many (but not all) of the hundreds of ecolabels in the marketplace using a specific set of criteria to create a list of trusted private-sector standards and ecolabels. These criteria include:

  • How was the standard developed?
  • How effective is the standard in addressing human and environmental health?
  • How is conformity to the standard assessed? (Is it third-party verified?)
  • How is the labeling managed on the end products?

EPA’s list of recommendations includes standards and certifications with recognizable logos, such as Cradle to Cradle Certification, Ecologo (by UL), the Global Recycled Standard and the EPA’s own Safer Choice program, among others. The recommendations, which the agency is in the process of updating, help to identify thousands of products and services that help users conserve energy or water, include more recycled content or reduce the use of PFAS and single-use plastics.

  • Inclusion in the list is not an endorsement by the EPA, but rather a statement that the standard/ecolabel meets the agency’s criteria.

The federal government is the single largest purchaser in the world, spending $630 billion annually on goods and services, and the EPA created the list to help federal purchasers comply with laws and executive orders directing federal agencies to prioritize products that address environmental impacts. But anyone can use these widely available and easily identifiable ecolabels.

“With hundreds of ecolabels in the marketplace, EPA’s recommendations cut through the clutter and give federal purchasers and other sustainability-conscious consumers confidence when making purchasing decisions,” says Jennie Romer, deputy assistant administrator for pollution prevention in EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “The ecolabels and standards that EPA includes in the recommendations have demonstrated that they can truly help us achieve sustainability at scale.”

How Promo Companies Can Use The EPA Ecolabels List

The recommended standards/ecolabels are organized in an online table that can be filtered by product category. Choose a product category, enter specific keywords in the search box, or check the plastics or PFAS box to get started. Additional information for each standard/ecolabel – including links to product registries – is available by clicking the blue “i” info icon on the right.

Promotional products companies can use the EPA’s list to boost their own sustainability efforts in a variety of ways:

  • Look for products with EPA-recommended standards/ecolabels when purchasing supplies for your business.
  • Use the EPA’s four criteria to select which standards/ecolabels may be best applied to your own business.
  • Get your own products certified to one of the recommended standards/ecolabels.
  • Ask your suppliers to get their products certified to one of the listed standards/ecolabels.

“This kind of guidance from a federal agency is helpful in combatting greenwashing, as well as being a useful tool for companies to use in clarifying their efforts and how to communicate them,” says Elizabeth Wimbush, PPAI’s director of sustainability and responsibility. “Remember – when in doubt, measure it out!”

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