Green Guides
Also searched as: FTC Green Guides, Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, 16 CFR Part 260, environmental marketing guides, greenwashing guidance
Federal Trade Commission guidance at 16 CFR Part 260 explaining how the Commission applies its deception standard to environmental marketing claims such as recycled, biodegradable and general eco-friendly claims.
In detail
The Guides are administrative interpretations rather than binding regulations. They describe how the FTC is likely to assess environmental claims under Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices. They set general principles, such as holding competent and reliable scientific evidence for objective claims and making qualifications clear and prominent, then address specific claim types, including general environmental benefit, certifications and seals, compostable, degradable, recyclable, recycled content and renewable materials. A claim inconsistent with the Guides can be challenged as deceptive under Section 5.
The science and numbers
The degradable section, 16 CFR 260.8, shows how the Guides turn a word into an evidentiary standard. An unqualified 'degradable' or 'biodegradable' claim should be backed by competent and reliable scientific evidence that the entire item will completely break down and return to nature within a reasonably short time after customary disposal. For items customarily disposed of in landfills, incinerators or recycling facilities, the Guides treat anything beyond one year as too long. Because landfills are largely dry and oxygen-poor, textiles that end up there are unlikely to meet that benchmark. Parallel logic runs through the recycled-content section, where a claim should reflect material recovered from the waste stream and qualified percentage statements help avoid overstatement.
A practical example
A clothing brand wants to print 'eco-friendly' on a polyester jacket that contains some recycled fiber. Reading the Guides, a student would note that a broad, unqualified environmental benefit claim is very hard to substantiate, while a narrower statement about the specific recycled share of the fabric is the kind of claim the Guides discuss in detail. This illustrates the framework and is not a compliance opinion.
What to distinguish
The Guides are not a statute and do not define every term; the 2012 revision declined to give specific guidance on words such as 'sustainable,' 'natural' and 'organic.' Fiber-content disclosure falls under separate textile labeling statutes. Some states refer to the Guides in their own environmental marketing laws, so a single claim can raise both federal and state questions.
Origins and history
The FTC first issued the Guides in 1992 and revised them in 1996, 1998 and 2012; the 2012 revision added guidance on certifications and seals, carbon offsets and renewable claims. On 20 December 2022 the Commission published a request for public comment on further updates, later extending the comment deadline to 24 April 2023. Reports through April 2026 indicated that no revised Guides had been issued and that the 2012 text remained in force; the FTC's Green Guides page gives the current status.
Related terms
Sources & further reading
- Federal Trade Commission: Green Guides
- Federal Register: Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, request for comment (20 December 2022)
- Federal Trade Commission: FTC Issues Revised Green Guides (October 2012)
- Packaging Dive: Green Guides updates still pending as states lead on labeling
Technical references reviewed 2026-09-22. Examples are illustrative. Industry organizations and manufacturers describe their own fields; their references are not independent product endorsements. Figures are approximate and depend on the stated test conditions.