Locally Made or Sourced - Self Declared indicates that a product, its componentry or manufacture has come from within 100 kilometres of the manufacture to delivery meaning less impact on the environment as there is generally minimal transport or storage requirements. Timber, stone, produce and flowers are all examples of componentry.
Locally made products support local economies and local workers - the people in your own community. There is no need to fly, ship or drive these products long distances or sit them in warehouses. The economic benefits of not transporting, nor refrigerating and storing products, generally means they are cheaper, fresher and the maker has the opportunity to generate more income, which in turn gets invested in local communities.
EKKO SCORE: Locally Made or Sourced - Self Declared sits in the LOCAL Family under the Environmental Standard: Place of Origin 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: Place of Origin. 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 Organic - Chemical Free 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.