CoolBest focused on sustainability in its revamped packaging, with the claims 'Now in a plant-based pack' and 'Our packs are 100% linked to plant-based materials and 100% reusable'. Is CoolBest allowed to make these environmental claims? The Advertising Code Committee (ACC) rules that it is not.     

According to the ACC, the absolute claim 'Now in a plant-based pack' gives the impression that the entire packaging is plant-based. In reality, it also contains aluminium. In addition, of the part that consists of plastic, CoolBest cannot guarantee that it comes entirely from tall oil (vegetable resin from coniferous trees). This is because tall oil is mixed with fossil raw materials in the production process. Thus, in addition to aluminium, each package also contains an unknown proportion of fossil raw materials. Therefore, the ACC also rejects CoolBest's proposal to claim '95% linked to plant-based materials' instead of '100%'.

A clue, but still worth mentioning: before using an (environmental) claim, always make sure you have sufficient evidence to substantiate the claim. Especially with an absolute claim, the burden of proof is very high, 100% = 100%. CoolBest could, for instance, use a disclaimer for the presence of aluminium, as this falls outside the 'plant-based' claim. An example where this did go well is a ruling by the ACC on a bottle of Remia chip sauce. Remia made a clear disclaimer that the claim '100% recyclable' only refers to the bottle and that the label must be removed from the bottle for recycling.

Although the complaint is about CoolBest's orange juice variant, the absolute claim 'Now in a plant-based package' is on all packaging. So this ruling has major implications. Fortunately for CoolBest, the ACC holds that the slogan 'We keep it cool, you get the best! ' can be maintained.

Myrna Teeuw

16 December 2022