The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is tinkering with the Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims (Green Guides). Given the growing appeal of “green claims” for a variety of products, it is fitting the FTC is refining and modernizing the Green Guides to help marketers avoid making environmental marketing claims that are unfair or deceptive under Section 5 of the FTC Act. Importantly, the FTC seeks to update the guides “based on increasing consumer interest in buying environmentally friendly products.”

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has stepped up its enforcement initiatives and recently settled two cases with companies that market plastic lumber and related products. FTC alleged that these companies misled consumers in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act in their marketing materials regarding the environmental attributes of their products.

After more than three years of discussion, research, review, and debate, the United States Federal Trade Commission (US FTC) released proposed revisions to its Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims (the “Green Guides”) in late 2010. The Green Guides provide FTC “guidance” on what is and is not appropriate in the ever-fluid area of environmental marketing. They are designed to help product marketers avoid making false and misleading environmental claims that might violate section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act.

Early in October, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released important revisions to its Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims (Green Guides) to make them easier for companies to use and understand.

The growth in green marketing is getting a lot of attention these days, especially from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the federal agency tasked with preventing unfair and deceptive trade practices. Mindful of potential false and misleading advertising, FTC has been revising its Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, known as the “Green Guides.”