The Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) has launched a new Environmental Claims Code to provide clarity on the responsible advertising of environmental claims.
The code, which will be effective from 1 March 2025, aims to support government efforts to tackle greenwashing and develop transparency and trust in environmental marketing.
It complements and reinforces the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) Guidance on Environmental Claims, ensuring environmental messaging is “truthful, clear and verifiable”.
AANA CEO Josh Faulks told B&T that greenwashing and greenhushing had become hot topics for the advertising industry, particularly since the ACCC began a crackdown on companies that engaged in greenwashing.
“One of the first thing I did when I came into this role, two years ago now, was to bring forward the review of the Environmental Claims Code,” he said. “That was very deliberate, because we were seeing a clear shift in community standards when it came to environmental claims. And to be honest, a few brands weren’t doing a very good job,” he said.
“There has been a lot of noise in the media about greenwashing, as well as increased regulatory activity, and there has been changes happening overseas. So, we thought the right thing to do was to bring forward that review to align our code with community standards as soon as possible.
“Greenwashing undermines consumer confidence in environmental claims. And at the same time, a lot of businesses have been telling me that they aren’t willing to make environmental claims because of concerns around regulatory action or consumer backlash. So, we have greenwashing and greenhushing which means we are not having the conversation we need to have about what a sustainable future looks like.
“The purpose of this code is to build trust with consumers around environmental claims and to create guardrails and standards for business, to give them the confidence to make those claims. The hope is we will influence the behavioural change that is necessary to help us transition to a sustainable future.”
Under the new Code, advertisers will be obligated to ensure that any claims about future actions or sustainability targets are realistic, achievable and based on solid evidence.
This code covers environmental claims but does not cover societal and governance claims, the other two parts of the ESG equation.
Faulks said that ironing out environmental claims was the primary focus, especially with a Senate inquiry into greenwashing due to come out later this year.
Australia’s self-regulatory advertising system has two parts the AANA’s codes of practice and an independent complaints handling process administered by Ad Standards. With high levels of compliance with the decisions of the Ad Standards Community Panel, and the support of all major media owners and platforms, this system aims to protect consumers because brands that fall foul of the Ad Standards often have to take down ads, sometimes at considerable cost.
The AANA said it is offering its members training and free advice on individual campaigns, and will roll out a new online training module in the coming months.
For more information on the Environmental Claims Code or to enquire about upcoming training, visit aana.com.au.