My Way Up founder, Steve Collins
Clean Washing is the newest buzzword when it comes to unpicking some of the ‘clean’ claims being made in the health, beauty, and wellbeing space. Marketing products and brands as ‘clean’ is the newest gimmick for adding appeal, but not all is as straightforward as it seems.
Nutritionist, physiologist, and founder of My Way Up, Steve Collins, explains more about Clean Washing (sister to ‘Greenwashing’).
What do you need to know about ‘Clean Washing’?
Let’s face it, sometimes the health and wellness industry can be confusing. With all the information out there, combined with questionable sources often spruiking misinformation and the likes of Greenwashing from brands (more on that later), it can be hard to know what to actually believe in.
Now there’s also a new tactic in town, that’s set to leave us in a health and wellness minefield. Enter, Clean Washing. Never heard of it? Don’t worry, you’re not alone.
What is Clean Washing?
Similar to Greenwashing, Clean Washing is a marketing strategy used by companies to make products or services appear better than they actually are so consumers buy them. While Greenwashing typically refers to products that have been marketed as environmentally friendly or sustainable (yet typically aren’t), Clean Washing refers to brands and products that have been marketed as ‘clean’.
As with the case of Greenwashing, Clean Washing misleads consumers into unknowingly supporting companies that are not genuinely committed to the causes they say they are. While some companies may engage in Clean Washing intentionally, others may do so unintentionally due to a lack of understanding or knowledge about what’s in their products and the practices used to create their ingredients or formulas.
How do brands ‘Clean Wash’ customers?
Well, unfortunately, they can do it in many ways:
- They might use vague or misleading language to make claims about their ingredients such as using terms such as ‘natural’, ‘untouched’, ‘harnessing nature’, and ‘pure’ (the list goes on) when describing ingredients or how they are sourced.
- They could use imagery or symbols that depict safe ingredients, making claims that are difficult to substantiate or verify, and exaggerate the natural benefits of a product.
- They could emphasise the lack of harmful ingredients in their products but do this to take away attention from other harmful ingredients that are in their product (that they don’t actively highlight). This could be in the form of X symbols over harmful ingredients on the front of the pack, with other harmful ingredients listed on the ingredients list on the back of the pack (which many people don’t read, nor may understand what they are).
- They could align themselves with professionals or wellness ambassadors who are credible sources yet have been paid hefty sums to endorse products (that they themselves may not even believe in).
- They could be vague about their practices of sourcing raw materials or get them from questionable places (often opting to ‘omit’ that information from the public yet knowing full well that their sources use unethical and unsustainable practices).
So what does ‘clean’ really mean?
This is often where all the grey area comes in because it can mean different things to different people. In most cases, the industry is largely unregulated, so brands get away with a lot of questionable marketing activity. However, we’re here to clean that up (pardon the pun).
The word clean in the health, wellness, and beauty industry typically is synonymous with non-toxic. The term should be used to describe products – or brands – that are free from harmful chemicals. This includes ingredients such as parabens, phthalates, sulfates, and synthetic fragrances. The reason people might opt for a ‘clean’ version of a product is some ingredients are known to be harmful to humans, such as parabens or talc. They may also be concerned (and rightly so) about the impact these chemicals could be having on the environment, such as our waterways.
How can we avoid being ‘Clean Washed’?
- Don’t just buy a product based on face value, that is, the bright and bold terms and phrases listed on the front of the packaging. Turn the product over and look at the back in the ingredients section. If there are a lot of scientific names that you don’t understand, do a quick Google search to find out what they are.
- Research the company and their products in depth. Customers can research companies to learn more about their ingredients, formulas, and practices in sourcing and manufacturing their products. Also look for information about their supply chain, carbon footprint, and environmental initiatives to make sure they’re not also Greenwashing you – this can be just as bad. If you can’t easily find the information on a brand’s website, don’t be afraid to ask them directly. If they’ve got nothing to hide, they should be open and honest with you (and happy to share any relevant info).
- Look for third-party certifications. One way to identify products that are truly clean-friendly is to look for third-party certifications from reputable organisations. These certifications can help verify that a product meets certain standards and has undergone rigorous testing and evaluation.
- Look for brands that have been created by experts in their field. By that we don’t mean brands that have paid an expert to be the ‘face’ ones that have legitimately been created by experts.
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