Volvic to appeal after French court rules green claims were misleading
The ruling, handed down by the Paris Judicial Court on 23 June, was welcomed on Monday as a “landmark” decision by the French consumer association CLCV.
Danone – the French food and drinks giant that owns Volvic – said it contested both the court's reasoning and its conclusion regarding “certain practices implemented in the past”, which it said had fully complied with the legislation and industry standards applicable at the time.
“Volvic will therefore appeal against this ruling,” the group said.
The case was brought by CLCV after Volvic used claims including “carbon neutral”, “certified carbon neutral”, “100 percent recycled”, “100 percent recyclable” and “always recyclable” on its bottles and packaging. The court found that the claims amounted to a misleading commercial practice.
Volvic has been ordered to pay €75,000 in damages to CLCV and to publish the judgement on the homepage of its website for six months.
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Court questions carbon claims
In a statement issued on Monday, CLCV welcomed the court's decision, saying it had ruled for the first time on the use of terms such as “carbon neutral” and “100 percent recyclable” in relation to a consumer product.
According to the association, the decision “sets a standard that effectively protects consumers”.
The court found that the emissions produced in making a Volvic bottle were not fully cancelled out by carbon offsetting projects, and said the claims “carbon neutral” or “certified carbon neutral” were therefore likely to mislead consumers.
Danone said the claim had been based on certification obtained in 2020 from the Carbon Trust, using what it described as a recognised methodology.
The group added that after the certification was withdrawn in September 2023, it had “rethought” its approach and carried out a review to strengthen its carbon neutrality commitments, in order to ensure they remained in line with regulatory expectations.
Danone said it was working to cut its global carbon emissions by an average of 35 percent by 2030 compared with 2020, across all its operations.
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Recycling labels also challenged
The court also challenged Volvic's use of the claims “100 percent recycled” and “100 percent recyclable”.
It found that the bottles were only partially recycled and said the claim “100 percent recyclable” appeared on a label whose adhesive and ink were not, in fact, fully recyclable.
The ruling comes amid growing scrutiny of environmental marketing in Europe, particularly around plastic bottles and claims linked to recycling, carbon offsetting and climate neutrality.
In November 2023, BEUC, the European Consumer Organisation of which CLCV is a member, lodged a complaint with the European Commission over environmental claims relating to plastic bottles.
(With newswires)