Will climate-neutral products save our planet?

To put it briefly: the answer is unfortunately no, they don’t.

But why are products so often advertised as climate neutral and what does that actually mean?

What is a CO2 reduction certificate?

Companies cause CO2 emissions that, due to their constant economic productivity, cannot be completely reduced to zero even with the best measures. Engie, a company that offers CO2 compensation, among other things, claims: "Your company is climate neutral if you offset these unavoidable emissions with high-quality CO2 reduction certificates." The money generated from the purchase of such certificates is partly invested in climate protection projects. Classic examples are reforestation and renewable energy projects. However, a large part of the money paid is often simply for the use of the climate neutral label and the actual impact on the ground remains difficult to determine.

Why do CO2 certificates not contribute to climate protection in most cases?

At first glance, reforestation projects, for example, seem like a good opportunity for companies to do something for the climate, but in most cases it is not clear to consumers what type of climate protection project it is. In this respect, the quality of the climate-neutral seal is also not comprehensible. In addition, the assessment of how much CO2 a company has to compensate for a certain product is based on inaccurate calculations. For example, it is not taken into account that the reforested forest may not last forever and may be destroyed early on, for example by fire or deforestation.

Greenwashing? Greenwashing!

Many companies rely on purchasing CO2 reduction certificates instead of actually reducing their CO2 emissions.

No wonder, because acquiring such a certificate is convenient and inexpensive, while reducing CO2 emissions requires much more effort and cost. Another problem is that consumers are (deliberately) misled with climate-neutral seals, because only a few consumers associate climate neutrality with (often low-effective) CO2 reduction certificates. Instead, the impression is created of a state that cannot be easily achieved due to the continuous economic productivity of a company. The desire of many consumers for easily identifiable characteristics in order to be able to make sustainable decisions is exploited by many companies for marketing purposes and exploited for convenience.

So how trustworthy is the label “climate neutral”?

Of course, not all providers can be tarred with the same brush. However, an investigative research by Die Zeit revealed something shocking: the journalists were able to purchase "climate neutral" labels for a non-existent company from three different providers (including myclimate and ClimatePartner). They did not have to provide proof of CO2 emissions or reduce them beforehand.

So everything is stupid? What should I look out for then?

Of course, there are also companies that are really serious about sustainability and that really want to do their part to protect our climate. We would pay attention to the following: do the companies prepare life cycle assessments for their products or entire internal processes including the entire supply chain? Do companies also try to obtain data or estimates from contract manufacturers or raw materials/ingredients used? Do they use green electricity or even produce their own electricity and are more climate-friendly transport options chosen? Another always good indicator: is the company transparent with regard to the origin of its products and is the origin of all raw materials used documented and clearly communicated?

Sources:

https://utopia.de/news/klimaneutral-siegel-provider-fragwuerdige-methods/

https://daserste.ndr.de/panorama/archiv/2021/PR-Mogelpackung-Baeume-pflanzen-fuers-Klima,baeume292.html

https://www.watson.de/nachhaltigkeit/analyse/435600600-baeume-anlagen-fuers-klima-wie-sinnvoll-ist-das- aktuell

https://blog2help.com/2018/05/baumspende-how-much-costs-it-a-tree-plants-to-let.html

https://taz.de/Baeume-gegen-den-Klimawandel/!5738677/

https://www.tagesschau.de/wissen/klima/klimaneutralitaet-107.html