Apple could be forced to drop Carbon Neutral tag

Last month, Apple launched the Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2, and the company is advertising these two smartwatches to be carbon-neutral, which means that Apple is removing the same amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere that is being produced in the lifecycle of these wearables. However, the European Union says that Apple’s claim is “bogus” and accuses the company of “greenwashing” (via Financial Times).

How does Apple achieve carbon neutrality?

According to Apple, it managed to make the Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2 carbon neutral by “reducing greenhouse gas emissions from three biggest sources across the product life cycle: electricity, materials, and transportation,” and then applying “high-quality carbon credits from nature-based projects for emissions that cannot yet be avoided or reduced with existing solutions.”

For those of you who don’t know about carbon credits, these are credits that an organisation can purchase to offset the amount of carbon emitted by it. Carbon credits are generated from environmental projects that mitigate carbon. One carbon credit is equivalent to one ton of greenhouse gases removed from the atmosphere.

EU plans to ban the carbon-neutral term

Well,  The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) says that a brand cannot advertise a product to be carbon-neutral if the greenhouse gases emitted in the lifecycle of that product are balanced out by the company using carbon credits.

“Carbon neutral claims are scientifically inaccurate and mislead consumers,” said Monique Goyens, Director General, BEUC. “The EU’s recent decision to ban carbon neutral claims will rightly clear the market of such bogus messages, and Apple Watches should be no exception,” she added.

“It’s misleading to consumers to give the impression that buying the Watch has no impact on the climate at all”, said Gilles Dufrasne, Policy Lead, Global Carbon Markets, which is an organisation partially funded by the European Union. He also called Apple’s claims“accounting tricks”.

That means once the EU bans such claims, Apple will no longer be able to advertise the Watch Series 9, Watch Ultra 2, or any other products as carbon neutral by offsetting the emission of greenhouse gases generated in the lifecycle of those products using carbon credits. At least in Europe. If Apple has to go back on its word, it could be a huge dent in the brand’s image.