Businesses and consumers are increasingly alert to misleading, false or cavalier claims made by organisations about their environmental, eco friendly and societal performance.<\/p>\n
The days when companies could make broad statements about what they do to protect people and the planet without being challenged are over.<\/p>\n
Decades ago we started hearing the term \u2018green washing\u2019 \u2013 where companies overstated or even lied about environmental practices, such as sustainable sourcing, deforestation and carbon reduction. There are many types of \u2018washing\u2019 we hear about now, often referred to by the catch-all phrase: \u2018social washing\u2019.<\/p>\n
This umbrella term covers all manner of ethical activity, or rather, inactivity, and goes beyond care of natural resources to include labour and human rights, gender equality, modern day slavery and more.<\/p>\n
Despite heightened awareness from the procurement profession and the public, there are still plenty of examples of companies trying to pass themselves off as better than they are and mislead consumers on all manner of environmental social and governance.<\/p>\n
Green-washing<\/strong><\/p>\n The oil and gas sector, for instance, has been accused of \u2018green washing\u2019 its environmental performance<\/a>\u00a0by using advertising to appear more climate positive than it is. A common problem across all sectors, the\u00a0UK government<\/a>\u00a0has recently announced plans to crack down on \u2018greenwashing\u2019 with the delivery of a \u201cGreen Taxonomy\u201d in 2021 \u2013 a common framework setting the bar for investments that can be defined as environmentally sustainable, and reduce negative environmental impact.<\/p>\n Pink-washing<\/strong><\/p>\n The automotive industry has been accused of \u2018pink washing\u2019 by showing support to breast cancer charities despite links between the disease and car emissions. USA based charity \u201cthink before you pink<\/a>\u201d launched a campaign against the Ford Motor Company in 2018 claiming their \u201cPut the brakes on breast cancer\u201d campaign was hypocritical pink washing.<\/p>\n Rainbow-washing<\/strong><\/p>\n In 2018 charity Stonewall and retailer Primark<\/a>\u00a0were accused of \u2018rainbow washing\u2019 after t-shirts to promote Pride were produced in Turkey, where LGBTQ+ rights are yet to be fully developed.<\/p>\n Blue-washing<\/strong><\/p>\n While others have been described as \u2018blue washing\u2019 \u2013 using an affiliation to the\u00a0United Nations\u2019 Global Compact<\/a>, perhaps the world\u2019s largest corporate sustainability initiative, to mask unwarranted claims around fair labour practices and human rights.<\/p>\n In some cases it is an intentional effort to mislead, other times it is caused by a lack of awareness or complacency. Either way, for those found wanting \u2013 by the public, business customers or NGOs who seek out the worst offenders \u2013 it can mean irreparable harm to their reputation and finances.<\/p>\n This can be easily avoided. A small amount of time and money invested in checking on your own performance and that of your supply chain can lead to big returns \u2013 as well as untold amounts saved through risk mitigation.<\/p>\n By asking the right questions of yourself, your partners and contractors you can ensure you make better, more informed decisions.<\/p>\n We collect and validate supplier data to help you mitigate these types of risks. Our question sets can determine what action suppliers take on\u00a0carbon reduction<\/a>, health and safety, and the efforts they make in the areas of\u00a0environmental,<\/a>\u00a0social and corporate governance (ESG).<\/p>\n We check what certificates suppliers hold, for example, where the gaps and possible risks are and provide recommendations. If an audit is suggested, an auditor visits the supplier and follows a line of enquiry, ensuring nothing is taken at face value.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a process of continual improvement, managing risk through supply chain and helping suppliers to improve their practices and making sustainable practices a top priority.<\/p>\n Greater scrutiny can even lead to savings. Anglian Water, for instance, saves \u00a32m a year and has reduced its operational carbon by more than 60% by proactively measuring and managing carbon over the past decade.<\/p>\n Whether the driver is people, profit and planet, the stakes are high if you get it wrong \u2013 but so could the returns be for getting it right.<\/p>\nAsk the right questions, avoid the risk<\/h4>\n
Manage risk to save money<\/h4>\n