The false promise of certification

The report investigates voluntary certification in three high-impact sectors: fisheries, palm oil, and textiles. It concludes that a proliferation of low-ambition schemes creates consumer confusion and allows companies to 'greenwash' unsustainable practices. In fisheries, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and Friend of the Sea (FOS) are criticized for certifying fisheries with high bycatch and destructive methods. In palm oil, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and government-led schemes like ISPO are found ineffective at stopping deforestation and peatland drainage. In textiles, the report highlights the lack of transparency in the Higg Index and the low standards of the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) compared to the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). The authors call for the abolition of the least ambitious schemes and a shift toward mandatory due diligence, transparency, and science-based regulations.

• The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and Friend of the Sea (FOS) have certified fisheries that overfish, maintain high bycatch levels, and occasionally conflict with national laws.
• The MSC uses a 'compartmentalised' approach that allows vessels to be certified for sustainable tuna catches while simultaneously using the same equipment to catch protected species unsustainably.
• The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) fails to prevent the conversion of secondary forests or the draining of peatlands and lacks binding requirements for greenhouse gas emissions reductions.
• Government-led palm oil schemes in Indonesia (ISPO) and Malaysia (MSPO) are described as a 'race to the bottom' because they primarily require compliance with weak national legislation.
• The Higg Index, widely used by fashion brands, relies heavily on self-assessment and lacks the transparency necessary to drive continuous improvement.
• The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) maintains significantly higher environmental and social standards than BCI, prohibiting GM crops and heavy metals.
• The CanopyStyle initiative for viscose is considered partial because it only addresses wood pulp sourcing and ignores the toxic chemicals used in manufacturing.
• The EU Ecolabel for viscose is outdated and less ambitious than the EU Best Available Techniques (BAT) because it lacks limits on emissions to water.
• Certification schemes often suffer from inherent conflicts of interest where third-party auditors are paid by the companies they are assessing.

APA

Brad, A., Delemare, A., Hurley, N., Lenikus, V., Mulrenan, R., Nemes, N., Trunk, U., & Urbancic, N. (2018). The false promise of certification. Changing Markets Foundation. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/THE_FALSE_PROMISE_OF_CERTIFICATION_FINAL_WEB.pdf

Chicago

Brad, Alina, Alice Delemare, Natasha Hurley, Valerie Lenikus, Rachel Mulrenan, Noemi Nemes, Urska Trunk, and Nusa Urbancic. The false promise of certification. Changing Markets Foundation, 2018. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/THE_FALSE_PROMISE_OF_CERTIFICATION_FINAL_WEB.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Brad |first1=Alina |last2=Delemare |first2=Alice |last3=Hurley |first3=Natasha |last4=Lenikus |first4=Valerie |last5=Mulrenan |first5=Rachel |last6=Nemes |first6=Noemi |last7=Trunk |first7=Urska |last8=Urbancic |first8=Nusa |title=The false promise of certification |publisher=Changing Markets Foundation |date=May 2018 |url=https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/THE_FALSE_PROMISE_OF_CERTIFICATION_FINAL_WEB.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{brad2018false, author = {Brad, Alina and Delemare, Alice and Hurley, Natasha and Lenikus, Valerie and Mulrenan, Rachel and Nemes, Noemi and Trunk, Urska and Urbancic, Nusa}, title = {{The false promise of certification}}, institution = {Changing Markets Foundation}, year = {2018}, month = may, url = {https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/THE_FALSE_PROMISE_OF_CERTIFICATION_FINAL_WEB.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }