The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has issued a compliance guide to help fashion retailers stay on the right side of the law.

The guide, which is based on the CMA’s Green Claims Code, aims to drive compliance with consumer law and create a level playing field for all fashion businesses.

The CMA will soon have strengthened consumer powers under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. This will enable the CMA to fine businesses up to 10% of their worldwide turnover if they break consumer law, meaning businesses should take steps now to make sure their claims are accurate and do not mislead shoppers.

The CMA has also issued letters to 17 brands to review their green claims and business practices. These letters highlight areas of concern regarding their green claims, such as the use of broad or general terms and whether certain products are being wrongly included in ‘eco’ ranges.

Tips for fashion brands

The guide sets out practical tips on how fashion brands should, amongst other things:

• give clear, accurate, and complete information about their products
• make sure the criteria used to decide which items are included in green collections are clearly set out and detail any minimum requirements – and that products are not labelled as part of a sustainable range unless they meet these criteria
• be clear and specific when using filters or other navigational tools to search for green products
• be clear if the claim is based on only specific parts of a product’s life cycle

For more information, visit the Misleading environmental claims collection page.

UKFT’s Sustainability 101 series

Issue 2 of UKFT’s Sustainability 101 publications focuses on green claims for brands, retailers and manufacturers, offering further support on how to make effective green claims and reliable statements when communicating sustainability. It also provides a world map indicating other regulatory requirements globally which could affect your business.

There are also two on-demand webinar episodes focused in this area – “The Sustainable Fashion Communication Playbook Masterclass: Shifting the narrative around Green Claims, with UN Environment Program” and “How to avoid Greenwashing in Fashion, with the CMA and Fox Williams” to learn how to adopt and integrate Green Claims principles into practice.

For member access or for questions, please contact info@ukft.org

UKFT SUSTAINABILITY 101

Further information: The CMA has not launched enforcement action against the 17 firms mentioned above and, in this instance, will not be naming them at this time.

Common concerns outlined in the letters include:

• the use of broad terms, such as ‘sustainable’, which are unclear and so more likely to mislead consumers
• unclear or otherwise potentially misleading claims about a product’s composition
• labelling products as ‘recycled’, thereby suggesting that the entire product is made of recycled materials when this does not appear to be the case
• potentially misleading claims about affiliations
• grouping products into collections or ranges without clearly stating the criteria for including products in those collections or ranges