"German court rules against 'climate neutral' fruit gum ad," 27 June 2024

The Federal Court of Justice (BGH) in Karlsruhe on Thursday ruled that companies cannot advertise products as climate-friendly without also explaining why.

The... Combating Unfair Competition brought the case against confectionery manufacturer Katjes over an advertisement that appeared in a food industry trade magazine in 2021.

It said: "Since 2021, Katjes has been producing all products in a climate-neutral manner."

The production of the fruit gums themselves was not climate-neutral. However, Katjes compensated for the emissions by supporting climate protection projects, which the competition authority considered to be misleading...

Presiding judge Thomas Koch observed that the risk of misleading advertising was particularly high in environment-related promotions...

Under the legislation, slogans such as "environmentally friendly," "climate neutral" or "biodegradable" should no longer be printed on products without reliable evidence...