Carbon Neutral - Self Declared is one of the declarations under the Ekko Score Conservation & Environment Standard.
Carbon Neutral - Self Declared means that the product has a zero carbon footprint. Usually this means that a trader will firstly seek to limit the amount of emissions a product creates in the first place and then either changes production activity to limit the emissions or buy carbon credits to bring the net emissions back to zero.
Emissions reduction is critical to stabilizing climate impacts for us all. Many individuals and companies undertake actions that reduce their carbon footprint, but don't always declare them in the form of a certification or declaration. Products from companies who do certify or declare mean that a conscious effort has been made to achieve the requirements of the declaration and potentially also measure the difference.
EKKO SCORE: Carbon Neutral - Self Declared sits in the CARBON Family under the Environmental Standard: Conservation & Environment of Ekko Score. One set of weighted Ekko Score points are gathered from each Family.
These are the claimable declarations & certifications under the Environmental Standard: Conservation & Environment. Please note that different certifications and declarations may be relevant to each category.
Yes, where the impact of the claim is similar. This is how it works.
IMPORTANTLY, SELF DECLARATIONS ARE GOVERNED BY CONSUMER LAW. IT IS AGAINST THE LAW FOR BUSINESSES TO MAKE FALSE CLAIMS (INCLUDING IMPLIED CLAIMS IN A CONTEXT LIKE EKKO SCORE).
EVEN IF A PRODUCT HAS A FORMAL CERTIFICATION, THAT CERTIFICATION DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ENTIRE INTEGRITY OF THE PRODUCT'S MAKE UP.
An example might be a Handmade, Australian, Certified Organic chocolate that contains Palm Oil. Under Ekko Score, this product would claim Certified Organic and would self declare: Zero Waste Production and Australian made, but could not claim the No Palm Oil declaration. This would mean a lower score under the No Exploitation Standard, making the inclusion of Palm Oil clear to potential consumers, without detracting from its other assets.
No product is perfect, but some products are definitely better than others. Ekko Score allows you to make the best decision you can, or to put it another way, the least worst decision. And to make that decision with the confidence of not being green washed. Find out more about how Ekko Score works.