rack the FTC’s process to consider whether to revise and expand the Green Guides, or alternatively, to pursue regulation. We will provide updates with the aim to help companies mitigate litigation risk and stay abreast of regulatory changes.Endnotes Lesley Fair, FTC Environmental Marketing Guides: Is It Time For a Change of Green-ery?, Fed. Trade Comm’n (Dec. 28, 2022), https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/blog/2022/12/ftc-environmental-marketing-guides-it-time-change-green-ery.See, e.g., Downing v. Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., No. 1:20-cv-11673-IT (D. Mass. Sep. 9, 2020); Duchimaza v. Niagara Bottling, LLC, — F. Supp. 3d. —, 2022 WL 3139898 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 5, 2022); Koh v. S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., No. C-09-00927 RMW, 2010 WL 94265 (N.D. Cal. Jan. 6, 2010).See, e.g., Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17580.5; Minn. Stat. § 325E.41.See Complaint at 14, Fed. Trade Comm’n v. Volkswagen Grp. of Am., No. 3:16-CV-01534 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 29, 2016); Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, 87 Fed. Reg. 77766, § III(A) (proposed Dec. 20, 2022) (to be codified at 16 C.F.R. pt. 260). Statement of Regulatory Priorities, Fed. Trade Comm’n, at 1 (Dec. 10, 2021), https://www.reginfo.gov/public/jsp/eAgenda/StaticContent/202110/Statement_3084_FTC.pdf.Id. (citing AMD Cap. Mgmt., 141 S. Ct. at 1352). Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, 87 Fed. Reg. 77766, 77769 (proposed Dec. 20, 2022) (to be codified at 16 C.F.R. pt. 260). Complaint at 2, Downing v. Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., No. 1:20-cv-11673-IT (D. Mass. Sep. 9, 2020), ECF. No. 1.Id.Id. (citing 16 C.F.R. § 260.12). 16 C.F.R. § 260.12(b)(1), (c). Note that according to the Green Guides, the entire package may still be considered “recyclable” if only minor incidental components cannot be recycled.See Duchimaza v. Niagara Bottling, LLC, — F. Supp. 3d. —, 2022 WL 3139898 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 5, 2022). 16 C.F.R. § 260.12(c); 16 C.F.R. § 160.3(b) (explaining that a bottle cap is a minor, incidental component, and thus the bottle can be considered recyclable even if the cap
not already done, product manufacturers and marketers should review all environmental claims on labeling and marketing materials with the Green Guides in mind, in order to reduce the threat of inquiry by the FTC or consumer litigation.Interested parties may submit commentary on the FTC’s potential updates to the Green Guides either online or by mail. Commenters should make reference to the following identifier in their comment: “Green Guides Review (16 CFR part 260) (Matter No. P954591)."12 Public comments must be submitted on or before February 21, 2023.13 The FTC may also host public workshops to gather additional input.1FTC Seeks Public Comment on Potential Updates to its ‘Green Guides’ for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, Fed. Trade Comm’n (Dec. 14, 2022), https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/12/ftc-seeks-public-comment-potential-updates-its-green-guides-use-environmental-marketing-claims; see also Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, 87 Fed. Reg. 77766 (proposed Dec. 19, 2022) (to be codified at 16 C.F.R. pt. 260).2 16 C.F.R. pt. 260 (2022).3 Fed. Trade Comm’n, supra note 1.4Id.5Id.6 Richard Dahl, Green Washing: Do You Know What You’re Buying?, 118 Envtl. Health Persp. 6 (2010), https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/ehp.118-a246.7 No. 21 Civ. 6434 (PAE), 2022 WL 3139898, at *7–11 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 5, 2022).8Id.9 No. 20-cv-03184-HSG, 2021 WL 3191733, at *6–8 (N.D. Cal. July 28, 2021).10Id.11Cases Tagged with Environmental Marketing, Fed. Trade Comm’n, https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases-proceedings/terms/1408?page=0 (last visited Jan. 1, 2023).12 Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, 87 Fed. Reg. 77766 (proposed Dec. 19, 2022) (to be codified at 16 C.F.R. pt. 260).13Id.[View source.]