Dove and Marmite maker Unilever to be investigated in UK over ‘greenwashing’
GuardianNov 30, 2023
UK: Unilever to Be Investigated for 'Greenwashing'
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The Facts
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority said Tuesday that it would investigate environmentally-friendly "green" claims made by consumer goods maker Unilever about some of its essential household products.
The watchdog argued that Unilever's use of colors, imagery, and language could have potentially misled shoppers by overstating the products' environmental friendliness and making them appear more natural.
The Spin
Narrative A
In recent years, Unilever has gone to extreme extents to burnish its do-gooder image. But the company's PR tactics have raised eyebrows among investors as well as environmentalists who noticed that not everything was as rosy — or "green" — as the consumer giant claimed. The UK probe will expose the harms of greenwashing with this company.
Narrative B
Unilever is among the few global corporate giants ahead of the curve in being environmentally and socially conscious. It has consistently informed the buyers of its varied products about their ecological aspects. The firm is a founding signatory of the UK Plastics Pact, which seeks to handle the problem of plastic waste effectively. Unilever is proud of its authentic corporate sustainability.