A new green certification program for products and packages will be launched on Earth Day, April 22, reported PackWorld. Companies can earn the “Use Less Stuff” certification if they deliver a 20-percent reduction in packaging, 20-percent reduction in energy consumption, or a 20-percent increase in efficiency.
The ULS logo program was created by Robert Lilienfeld, an expert on source reduction and editor of the monthly newsletter The ULS Report.
The ULS certification is based on Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) data gathered by a third party and reviewed by Lilienfeld and his advisory board of five scientists, reported Packaging World. LCI data must show that the product or package reduces waste by at least 20 percent compared to the previous product or an industry-standard product. In addition, companies must be able to prove that their claims meet the Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guides for environmental marketing statements.
Three consumer products — Perfect Glacier IceWater from Park City Ice Water Company, Winston Company’s Doctor Drain septic tank treatment, and Safonique’s laundry detergent– have been ULS certified. Waste reduction levels for these products range between 47 percent and 78 percent.
A 2008 study indicates that products bearing certain green labels or certification marks raise the chance that consumers will buy these products.