The print and paper advocacy group said it had challenged companies that subject their customers to repeated greenwashing messages which are damaging to the paper, print, and mailing industry.
The organisation said that with huge pressures on the economy, banks, telecom providers, utility companies, and even governmental organisations are increasingly focused on switching their customers from paper to digital services to cut costs.
But it added their customer communications often attempt to mask these cost-saving efforts by justifying the switch with unfounded environmental marketing appeals such as ‘Go Green – Go Paperless’ and ‘Choose e-billing and help save a tree’.
Two Sides Europe managing director Jonathan Tame said: “Not only are these greenwash claims in breach of established environmental marketing rules, but they are hugely damaging to an industry which has a solid and continually improving environmental record.
“Far from ‘saving trees’, a healthy market for forest products such as paper encourages the long-term growth of forests through sustainable forest management. Many of the organisations we engage are surprised to learn that European forests have actually been growing by 1,500 football pitches every day.”
Globally, Two Sides has engaged over 2,110 organisations making misleading statements about paper. So far, over 970 of them have removed such statements from their communications and Two Sides continues to engage and inform the remaining organisations.
The businesses were located throughout Europe, North and South America, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. In Europe, to date, Two Sides said 630 companies have removed unsubstantiated claims about paper.
“It remains vital that greenwash is challenged to ensure that the industry’s great environmental record is recognised and that the livelihoods of thousands of industry employees, as well as print, paper and postage volumes, are not damaged by the spread of misleading and opportunistic greenwash marketing,” said Tame.
Recent research, conducted by Two Sides and Censuswide in 2021, found that in Europe alone greenwashing threatens the loss of €337m (£292m) of value annually to the paper, print, and mailing industry.
Two Sides said its anti-greenwash campaign continues to be a priority for the organisation, and it will continue to urge companies to reject the use of unsubstantiated and misleading environmental claims about going paperless in all of their communications.
“We are grateful for the cooperation of the hundreds of organisations that have changed or eliminated greenwashing claims from their messaging, and we are also thankful for the many industry stakeholders and members of the public who send Two Sides examples of greenwash,” said Tame.
Two Sides has asked for any instances of greenwash found to be sent to greenwash@twosides.info.
