Environmental Claims Compliance Checklist NZ

Making sustainability claims can be a great way to show customers what your business stands for. Maybe your packaging has changed, your supply chain is cleaner, or your product genuinely uses fewer resources than the alternative.

The tricky part is that words like eco-friendly, green, natural and carbon neutral can mean different things to different people. If your claim is too broad, hard to prove, or missing key details, it can create Fair Trading Act risk even if your intentions are good.

The good news is that environmental claims compliance in NZ doesn't have to be complicated. You just need to be specific, keep evidence, and make sure your marketing team, suppliers and sales staff are all working from the same facts.

What Does The Fair Trading Act Say About Green Claims?

The Fair Trading Act 1986 says your environmental claims must not be false, misleading or deceptive, and you need reasonable grounds for claims you make about your goods or services.

This applies to claims on your:

• Product packaging and labels
• Website and online store
• Social media posts and influencer briefs
• Google ads, email campaigns, brochures and other advertising claims
• Customer contracts, sales scripts, proposals and pitch decks
• Certificates, icons, badges and comparison charts

The Commerce Commission can take action where environmental marketing gives customers the wrong overall impression. Customers, competitors and industry bodies can also make complaints.

For serious breaches, courts can order penalties. Under the Fair Trading Act, maximum penalties for many misleading conduct offences are up to $600,000 for a company and $200,000 for an individual. The bigger practical risk for many small businesses is also the cost of changing packaging, refunding customers, pulling campaigns and rebuilding trust.

A claim can be misleading even if every individual word is technically true. For example, saying a bottle is made with recycled plastic may be risky if only the cap contains recycled plastic and the main bottle does not. The overall impression matters.

A good rule of thumb is this: if a reasonable customer would take a stronger message from your claim than you can prove, tighten the wording.

Can You Say A Product Is Recyclable Or Compostable?

Yes, you can say a product is recyclable or compostable if the claim is accurate, specific and realistic for customers in New Zealand.

These claims often cause trouble because the word sounds simple, but the process is not. Something might be technically recyclable in a specialised facility overseas, but that doesn't mean a New Zealand customer can put it in their council recycling bin.

Recyclable Claims

Before you say a product or package is recyclable, check:

• Which part is recyclable, such as the bottle, label, lid or outer box
• Whether it's accepted through common kerbside recycling in the areas you sell into
• Whether customers need to rinse it, separate parts or remove labels
• Whether your symbol or icon could make the product look more recyclable than it is
• Whether there are known practical barriers, such as contamination or mixed materials

For example, 100% recyclable packaging is a strong claim. If only the cardboard sleeve is recyclable and the soft plastic pouch needs a specialist drop-off scheme, say that clearly instead.

Compostable Claims

Compostable claims need even more care. There's a big difference between:

• Home compostable, where the product can break down in a typical home compost system
• Commercially compostable, where it needs an industrial composting facility
• Biodegradable, which can be vague unless you explain the conditions and timeframe

If your cup is commercially compostable but many of your customers don't have access to a suitable facility, a broad compostable cup claim may overstate the environmental benefit. A clearer claim might be: This cup is commercially compostable where accepted. Check your local composting options.

Can You Say You Are Carbon Neutral, Natural, Ethical Or Locally Made?

It depends on the exact wording, because these claims can be broad and customers may read a lot into them.

Stronger claims need stronger evidence. If you use short labels or badges, make sure the detail is easy to find nearby, not hidden several clicks away.

Carbon Neutral And Net Zero Claims

A carbon neutral claim usually suggests that you have measured emissions, reduced them where possible, and offset the remaining emissions with credible carbon credits. If the claim only applies to one product line, don't make it look like your whole business is carbon neutral.

Say Mia runs a skincare business in Auckland. She sells 10,000 units of a face oil each year. Her consultant calculates that the product line creates 4 tonnes of CO2-e from packaging, freight and production. Mia buys 4 tonnes of verified offsets, but she hasn't measured staff travel, warehousing electricity or her other 12 products.

Mia should avoid saying we are a carbon neutral skincare brand. A safer, clearer claim could be: Our rosehip face oil product line has been measured at 4 tonnes CO2-e for the 2026 year, and we have purchased verified offsets for those measured emissions.

Natural Claims

Natural can be risky if your product contains synthetic preservatives, fragrances, colours or processing aids. If you mean made with natural ingredients, say how much and which ones.

For example, made with 95% naturally derived ingredients is easier to support than all natural.

Ethical Claims

Ethical can cover labour practices, animal welfare, sourcing, environmental impact and community impact. Be specific about what you mean. If you rely on supplier statements or product supply agreement wording, check whether they're current and credible.

Locally Made Claims

Locally made, made in New Zealand and designed in New Zealand aren't the same thing. If key components are imported and final assembly happens here, explain that clearly.

A product described as New Zealand made shouldn't give customers the impression that all materials and manufacturing are local if that isn't true.

How Do You Review An Environmental Claim Before It Goes Live?

You should review the claim from the customer's point of view, then test whether your evidence supports that impression.

This is the most useful step because legal risk often comes from the gap between what you meant and what the customer hears.

Step 1: Write Down The Exact Claim

Capture the words, images and context. A leaf icon, green colour palette or certificate-style badge can strengthen the environmental message, even if the text is careful.

Step 2: Identify The Likely Customer Takeaway

Ask yourself: what would an ordinary customer think this means after seeing it for 5 seconds?

For example, better for the planet could suggest a broad environmental benefit across the whole product lifecycle. If you only mean the packaging uses 30% less plastic, say that instead.

Step 3: Match The Claim To Evidence

Every environmental claim should have a supporting document. This might be a supplier certificate, lifecycle assessment, emissions report, test result, audit report, formulation record or manufacturing record.

Step 4: Add Limits And Conditions

If a claim depends on a particular action, location or timeframe, say so. For example:

• Recycle the cardboard sleeve through kerbside recycling where accepted.
• Commercially compostable in facilities that accept this material.
• Made in New Zealand using imported fabric.

Step 5: Check The Whole Campaign

Look across your website, packaging, FAQs, ads and sales materials. It's easy for an accurate claim in one place to become exaggerated somewhere else.

Templates and internal checklists can help, but they work best when tailored to your business, products and supply chain.

What Evidence Should You Keep On File?

You should keep enough evidence to show you had reasonable grounds for the claim when you made it.

Don't wait until someone complains. Under the Fair Trading Act, the issue isn't just whether the claim later turns out to be true. You also need a reasonable basis for making it at the time.

Your evidence file might include:

• Supplier declarations about materials, ingredients or origin
• Certificates from recognised testing, certification or standards bodies
• Technical data sheets, product specifications and importer compliance records
• Emails from suppliers confirming recyclability, compostability or sourcing details
• Manufacturing records showing where each step happens
• Emissions calculations and the method used
• Offset purchase records and registry details
• Audit reports for ethical sourcing or labour standards
• Photos of packaging, labels and website pages as they appeared when published
• Internal approval notes showing who checked the claim and when

Be cautious with supplier claims. If your overseas supplier says packaging is recyclable, ask what country or facility they're referring to. A claim that's accurate in Germany or China may not be accurate for your New Zealand customers.

Also set review dates. Certifications expire, suppliers change materials, councils change recycling rules, and your product mix may shift. A claim that was accurate last year might need updating now.

Environmental Claims Review Checklist: What To Include

A practical checklist should help your team slow down, ask the right questions and keep a clear record before any green claim goes live.

Here is a simple outline you can adapt. It isn't a finished legal document, and you should have it tailored before using it across your business.

1. Claim Details: Write the exact wording, image, badge or comparison your business wants to use.
2. Where The Claim Will Appear: List the packaging, website pages, ads, social posts, catalogues or sales materials involved.
3. Product Or Service Covered: State whether the claim applies to one item, one range, your packaging, your operations or your whole business.
4. Customer Takeaway: Record what a reasonable customer is likely to understand from the claim.
5. Evidence Held: List the documents, data and certificates that support the claim.
6. Limits And Conditions: Add any qualifications, such as location, facility access, product parts, time period or customer actions.
7. Supplier Checks: Record what you have confirmed with suppliers and when those confirmations expire or need review.
8. Approval Process: Name the person responsible for signing off the claim before publication.
9. Review Date: Set a date to re-check the claim, especially if laws, standards, suppliers or packaging change.
10. Version Record: Save screenshots, artwork files and copy approvals so you know exactly what was published.

You can also use this quick sense-check for common claim types:

• Recyclable: Which part is recyclable, and can your customers realistically recycle it in New Zealand?
• Compostable: Is it home compostable or commercially compostable, and what conditions are needed?
• Carbon neutral: What emissions were measured, what period was covered, and what offsets were used?
• Natural: What percentage is natural or naturally derived, and are there synthetic ingredients?
• Ethical: Which ethical issue are you referring to, and how have you verified it?
• Locally made: Which steps happen in New Zealand, and which materials or components are imported?

If the answer is hard to explain in one or two plain sentences, your claim probably needs clearer wording.

Key Takeaways

• Environmental claims in New Zealand are regulated by the Fair Trading Act 1986, and your claims must not mislead customers.
• You need reasonable grounds for green claims before you make them, not after someone asks questions.
• Broad words like eco-friendly, natural, ethical and carbon neutral need careful wording and strong evidence.
• Recyclable and compostable claims should reflect what customers can realistically do in New Zealand.
• Keep a clear evidence file with supplier records, certificates, calculations, approvals and review dates.
• A tailored internal review checklist can help your marketing, product and leadership teams stay consistent.

If you'd like help with reviewing your environmental marketing claims, preparing a tailored green claims checklist, updating your website terms or checking supplier wording, you can reach us at 0800 002 184 or team@sprintlaw.co.nz for a free, no-obligations chat.