An advertisement for Persil washing powder, a brand of giant Unilever that claimed to be “more respectful of the planet”, was deemed misleading by the British Advertising Authority (ASA), which banned its distribution on Wednesday.
The regulator concluded in its decision that this claim was unclear and that the advertisement “could be misleading”, in particular for failing to demonstrate “that the full life cycle of the product has a lower environmental impact compared to an earlier formulation”.
Green wash?
The advertisement, visible earlier this year on British television, notably showed children picking up rubbish in rivers and on a beach. He claimed that this detergent, sold in partially recycled plastic bottles, was also effective at 30°C and with short cycles.
Food and hygiene giant Unilever had told the ASA that these two features were, in fact, more environmentally friendly, arguing in particular that lower temperatures and shorter washes use less energy.
Still, “it was unclear whether these were new or recent developments and were specific to ‘advertised’ laundry detergents or applied more broadly to the Persil product line,” according to the ASA.
“We are disappointed with the decision” of the regulator, Unilever reacted in a statement on Wednesday, assuring that it was “committed to making continuous improvements in (its) products to make them more sustainable.”
A month ago, the British competition regulator announced that it was investigating a series of fashion brands such as Boohoo or Asos, accused of being highly polluting, to see if their environmental promises about certain products are misleading, because they are often unfounded. .
Source: BFM TV
