June 26, 2008 - Canada's Competition Bureau is requiring companies to get more specific with their green-product advertising, banning the use of "vague claims implying general environmental improvement."

The bureau has released a new set of guidelines, developed with help from the Canadian Standards Association, that asks companies advertising in Canada to stick to "clear, specific, and accurate" claims that have been substantiated and verified prior to use.

"Businesses should not make environmental claims unless they can back them up," says Sheridan Scott, Commissioner of Competition. "In the end, this will benefit legitimate businesses and consumers by bringing greater accuracy in advertising to the marketplace."

The bureau has kicked off a yearlong transition phase during which it will work to raise awareness and understanding of the new guidelines.

"During this one-year transition period, the bureau will not hesitate to pursue egregious cases of deceptive environmental claims," it said in a statement.

The U.S. and the U.K. are also struggling to regulate green marketing claims more effectively. In the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission has been conducting a series of public hearings on the issue in preparation for revising its environmental marketing guidelines. Britain's Advertising Standards Authority has taken a more piecemeal approach, most recently reviewing green claims made the the U.S. cotton industry.

Download Canada's Environmental Claims: A Guide for Industry and Advertisers here (PDF). Find a backgrounder on the new guidelines here.