DTI to consumers: Look for Green Choice seal on products

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is urging consumers to be more environmentally aware by looking for the Green Choice Philippines (GCP) seal of approval when buying products.

“With our consumer right to a healthy environment, comes the responsibility on environmental awareness. We should understand and evaluate the environmental consequences of our consumption,” DTI Consumer Policy and Advocacy Bureau (CPAB) director Marcus Valdez II said.

“We should also always remember our responsibility on critical awareness. We should be alert and inquisitive about the use, labels, claims, and the price and quality of products and services that we are availing,” Valdez said.

In line with being more environmentally aware, the DTI urged consumers to look for the GCP seal when buying products.

The DTI explained that the National Ecolabeling Program (NELP)-GCP is a voluntary program that provides criteria for environmentally sound and preferable products and services through life cycle consideration.

It is a tool for determining more environmentally-preferable manufacturing and packaging options through a set of quality and environmental requirements, including their verification methods.

The NELP-GCP follows the guidelines based on the international standards ISO 14024: Environmental labels and declaration.

It aims to guide consumers in choosing which products and services being produced and distributed in the country pose the minimum risks to environmental health and welfare.

The NELP Board, which oversees the NELP-GCP, is composed of the DTI, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Budget and Management Procurement Service (DBM), National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC), National Consumer Affair’s Council (NCAC), Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP), Philippine Business for Environment (PBE), and, Citizen’s Organization Concerned with Advocating Philippine Environmental Sustainability.

Meanwhile, applications for the certification of a product to bear the GCP ecolabel are processed with the Philippine Center for  Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development, Inc. (PCEPSDI),which administers the NELP-GCP.

The NELP-GCP has granted the seal of approval to 79 products under the categories of laundry detergent, cement, natural infill material, engine oil, ceramic tile, water-based paint, LED light, paper hand towel, tissue papers, induction lamp, electronic ballast, organic liquid disinfectant, fiber cement board and photocopier.

DTI said the GCP Seal of Approval reinforces corporate imaging and branding, strengthens competitive advantage based on environmental value, increases credibility for having been assessed using a clear set of standards, and opens opportunities in the government’s efforts in harmoniously integrating green practices in the existing procurement process.

The trade department noted that the increasing awareness of consumers on the need to protect the environment has been driving the growing demand for sustainable products. It cited recent studies by First Insight and the Baker Retailing Center at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and The Economist Intelligence Unit (2022), commissioned by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), showing that when it comes to sustainability, consumers also place importance on corporate values aside from the products and services.

However, it stressed that some businesses take advantage of this demand for sustainable products through greenwashing or the practice of making dishonest claims of sustainability or environmental friendliness in an attempt to gain market share, a deceitful marketing ploy intended to mislead consumers who prefer to purchase environmentally-conscious products and services.

In line with this, DTI Consumer Protection Group (CPG) Undersecretary Ruth Castelo reminded consumers to always be mindful of the authenticity or genuineness of a product’s claims, and the validity of its certification or labels.