Tag: Innovation

3M Easy Trap Sweep and Dust Sheets – Innovation Criteria

Posted on by Anne Hancock

Update: The public comment period for 3M has ended. Green Seal accepted public comments between May 17, 2021 and June 18, 2021. Learn more about 3M and its product certification status on Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Registry page.

3M has modified the claims associated with their application for Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation certification for their Easy Trap Sweep and Dust Sheets. The company’s proposed innovation claims are summarized below, and the full proposed criteria for this product can be reviewed on Green Seal’s website. Green Seal welcomes comments on the proposed criteria until June 18, 2021.  

Innovation Claims: An Environmentally Preferable Single-Use Dust Sheet 

According to 3M, this product differs from others on the market by incorporating at least 90% post-consumer recycled content polyethylene terephthalate (PET), while also achieving reductions in manufacturing water and energy use, air emissions, and waste. Manufacturing a single-use product with 90% post-consumer recycled content PET is estimated to deliver a 65% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions associated with the resource extraction, resin production, and manufacturing lifecycle phases.

Download Proposed Criteria

Call for Comments 

Green Seal is seeking input on 3M’s Easy Trap Sweep and Dust Sheets proposed revised criteria for Environmental Innovation certification from all stakeholders and the public. This public comment period will close on June 18, 2021 at 11:59PM ET. 

Next Steps in the Environmental Innovation Process

Green Seal will review comments and address any substantive suggestions or objections to the proposed criteria before finalizing them. 3M will submit documented proof of compliance with these criteria for Green Seal’s third-party review of these claims. 3M’s Easy Trap Sweep and Dust Sheet will achieve Green Seal Certification for Environmental Innovation if all criteria are met. 

About 3M’s Easy Trap Sweep and Dust Sheets 

When used as intended, the 3M Easy Trap Sweep and Dust Sheets provide commercial surface clearing to remove dust, dirt, and debris from floors and surfaces (e.g., out-of-reach surfaces such as fans, wall corners, and light fixtures) in order to prepare surfaces for disinfection and cleaning in commercial spaces. 

About Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Program is designed for manufacturers striving to advance product innovation for environmental good. The program allows manufacturers pioneering the integration of leading-edge design and performance aspects into their products to earn recognition for their innovations through a rigorous 3rd party certification. Find Innovation Certified products and learn more about the Environmental Innovation Program here.    

Green Seal’s Innovation Program Process: Validation of the Innovation Claim 

Green Seal has not yet validated this innovation claim. Once Green Seal finalizes the proposed criteria after this public comment period, 3M will submit documented proof of compliance with the criteria for Green Seal’s third-party review of these claims. 

Earning certification under the GS-20 Standard demonstrates that Green Seal, an independent third party, has verified the environmentally innovative aspect(s) of a product. The certification includes verification that the product innovation results in a significant reduction of human health and environmental impacts compared to products of the same functional class. 

View Innovation Registry

Expanding the Impact of our Environmental Innovation Program

Posted on by Anne Hancock

Green Seal has finalized key updates to our Environmental Innovation Standard to expand the program’s ability to promote market transformation and ensure measurable health and environmental impact reductions. 


About Environmental Innovation

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard (GS-20) is designed for manufacturers striving to advance product innovation for environmental good. The Environmental Innovation program allows manufacturers pioneering the integration of leading-edge design and performance aspects into their products to earn recognition for their innovations through a rigorous third-party certification.

Earning certification under this standard demonstrates that a product’s innovation significantly reduces health or environmental impacts compared to products of the same functional class.  

Recognizing Innovators

The updated Environmental Innovation Standard expands certification eligibility to products that have not yet earned certification under an applicable Green Seal product category standard – provided the product innovation reduces impacts above the applicable standard and is the first innovation of its kind in the North American market. This approach is designed to encourage advances in industry research that could inform revisions to our product category standards.

The Environmental Innovation Standard updates also expand opportunities for earning certification to products that employ innovations that were new to the market at product launch, even if others later also employed the same innovation. This eliminates the requirement that a product is the only one in the market with the innovation at the time of certification, and rewards producers who are the first to raise the bar for environmental innovation in their product categories, even if others followed. This also provides greater value to existing participants by opening the door to longer certification terms. 

Quantifying Impacts

Green Seal now requires all applicants to quantify the health and/or environmental impact reductions of their product innovations, including those that achieve impact reductions through improved functional performance.

Previously, product innovations that achieved impact reductions through improved functional performance demonstrated this through a quantification of the performance improvement, not the health and/or environmental impact reduction.

Requiring that applicants quantify the environmental and human health impact reductions associated with improved functional performance ensures manufacturers will identify the meaningful health and environmental improvements achieved by the innovation in order to earn market recognition for them. 

Thermal Intelligence’s BASECAMP – Innovation Criteria

Posted on by Anne Hancock

Update: The public comment period for Thermal Intelligence has ended. Green Seal accepted public comments between April 23, 2021 and May 24, 2021. Learn more about Thermal Intelligence and its product certification status on Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Registry page.


Thermal Intelligence has applied for Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation certification for BASECAMP, their line of industrial temporary heating, power generation, and lighting products. The company’s proposed innovation claims are summarized below, and the full proposed criteria for this product can be reviewed on Green Seal’s website. Green Seal welcomes comments on the proposed criteria until May 24, 2021.  

Innovation Claims: 

Thermal Intelligence’s innovation claims are the following: This product has been designed to be more energy efficient compared to other portable medium powered generators or generator-heater combinations fueled by diesel gasoline. The product claims to achieve a 50-66 percent reduction in operating fuel use, which saves an estimated 209 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year, calculated when used at full capacity for 180 days of use.   

Specifically, BASECAMP and BASECAMP XL’s patent-pending system design produces the same energy output using 57 gallons of diesel fuel for which a comparable generator and heater combination would require 171 gallons of diesel fuel.   

Download Proposed Criteria

Next Steps in the Environmental Innovation Process 

Green Seal will review comments and address any substantive suggestions or objections to the proposed criteria before finalizing them. Thermal Intelligence will submit documented proof of compliance with these criteria for Green Seal’s third-party review of these claims. Thermal Intelligence’s BASECAMP and BASECAMP XL will achieve Green Seal Certification for Environmental Innovation if all criteria are met. 

About the BASECAMP Smart 3-in-1 Heater, Light Tower, and Generator 

BASECAMP is designed to provide up to three functions simultaneously: 1) electric power generation, 2) temporary heating, and 3) lighting. The product is typically used in construction, restoration/remediation, and equipment pre-heating/thawing. The efficiencies of BASECAMP are achieved by capturing waste from one process and repurposing it into a simultaneous deliverable, eliminating waste. 

BASECAMP is designed on a diesel platform as that is frequently the sole fuel source available in temporary heat/power/lighting applications. Solar-powered generators do exist on the market, however, those products operate at significantly lower kW capacity than BASECAMP and BASECAMP XL and are not yet able to provide the power needed for all three applications.

Download Proposed Criteria

About Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Program is designed for manufacturers striving to advance product innovation for environmental good. The program allows manufacturers pioneering the integration of leading-edge design and performance aspects into their products to earn recognition for their innovations through a rigorous 3rd party certification. Find Innovation Certified products and learn more about the Environmental Innovation Program here.   

Green Seal’s Innovation Program Process: Validation of the Innovation Claim 

Green Seal has not yet validated this innovation claim. Once Green Seal finalizes the proposed criteria after this public comment period, Thermal Intelligence will submit documented proof of compliance with the criteria for Green Seal’s third-party review of these claims. 

Earning certification under the GS-20 Standard demonstrates that Green Seal, an independent third party, has verified the environmentally innovative aspect(s) of a product. The certification includes verification that the product innovation results in a significant reduction of human health or environmental impacts compared to products of the same functional class. 

View Innovation Registry

ABCO Products on the Paradigm Shift to Cleaning Sustainably

Posted on by Green Seal

ABCO Cleaning Products is a family owned, certified minority-business enterprise that manufactures a full range of high-quality mops and complementary tools used for everyday floor cleaning.

We recently transitioned our production facility to solar power, optimized our packaging to reduce corrugate box waste, and designed equipment to convert 100% post-industrial apparel waste into high-quality Natura Yarn cleaning products that are Green Seal Innovation Certified.

A key part of our business strategy is grounded in promoting circularity in the apparel sector by diverting more than 10 million pounds of material that would have been destined for landfills to Natura Yarns that are now used in more than 228 Green Seal-certified skus. 

WHY DO YOU PARTNER WITH GREEN SEAL?

We’ve seen a growing customer trend toward purchasing sustainable cleaning product alternatives. Aligning with Green Seal has elevated the brand equity of ABCO Products in the marketplace. Customers demand that products meet Green Seal’s standards – it has become a prerequisite for doing business. 

Customers demand that products meet Green Seal’s standards – it has become a prerequisite for doing business. 

HOW DO YOU USE GREEN SEAL IN YOUR CUSTOMER MARKETING? 

Using the resources provided by Green Seal, including messaging, marketing materials and social media promotion, has generated increased business for ABCO Products on a national scale in multi-market segments, including industrial, fast food, educational and sanitary maintenance supply.

ABCO’s private label partners get access to all the same marketing benefits. They are able to use our Green Seal certification to sub-register products and use the mark on their labels, packaging and promotional materials. 

WHAT’S NEXT FOR ABCO? 

We’re focusing now on optimizing our PTS injection molding facility. This facility manufactures a variety of plastic cleaning tools that in 2020 converted more than 2.1 million discarded plastic bottles into brooms & brushes as part our portfolio of sustainable products. 

Nyco Products’ Bug Eliminator – Innovation Criteria

Posted on by Anne Hancock

Update: The public comment period for Nyco Products Company has ended. Green Seal accepted public comments between November 18, 2020 and December 23, 2020. Learn more about Nyco Products Company and its product certification status on Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Registry page.

Nyco Products Company, a family-owned cleaning chemicals manufacturer, has applied for Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation certification for their minimum-risk bug eliminator. Nyco’s proposed innovation claims are summarized below, and the full proposed criteria for this product can be reviewed on Green Seal’s website. Green Seal welcomes comments on the proposed criteria until December 23, 2020. 

Innovation Claims: A Healthier Bug Eliminator for Soft-Bodied Insects

Nyco’s innovation claims are the following: This product has been designed to be less hazardous compared to other commercially available bug eliminators sold on the North American market. According to Nyco, this product is not formulated with hazardous ingredients common to this product category. The product ingredients are not classified as reproductive toxins, endocrine disruptors, neuro and systemic toxicants, aspiration toxicants, respiratory sensitizers, skin sensitizers, or fragrance allergens. The product ingredients do not cause skin corrosion, do not bioaccumulate, and the product itself is non-toxic to humans. Other commercially available contact-kill insecticides may pose significant risks to human health during the manufacturing and use life cycle phases. 

Next Steps in the Environmental Innovation Process 

Green Seal will review input received all stakeholders and the public during the public comment period and address any substantive suggestions or objections to the proposed criteria before finalizing them. Nyco will submit documented proof of compliance with these criteria for Green Seal’s third-party review of these claims. Nyco’s Bug Eliminator will achieve Green Seal Certification for Environmental Innovation if all criteria are met.

About Nyco’s Bug Eliminator

The Nyco bug eliminator is formulated to kill soft-bodied insects that can pose sanitation problems in food-handling settings including restaurants, food-service facilities, food-processing plants, the hospitality industry, warehouses, and manufacturing and industrial facilities. Targeted pests include Argentine ants, German cockroaches, bed bugs, red fruit flies, house flies, house spiders, moth flies, and two-spotted spider mites. This product is classified as a Minimum Risk Pesticide (EPA). 


About Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Program challenges product manufacturers to explore health and environmental impacts , engage in transformative product innovation, and achieve global recognition to the newest sustainability standard. 

Green Seal’s Innovation Program Process: Validation of the Innovation Claim 

Green Seal has not yet validated this innovation claim. Once Green Seal finalizes the proposed criteria after this public comment period, Nyco will submit documented proof of compliance with the criteria for Green Seal’s third-party review of these claims.

Earning certification under the GS-20 Standard demonstrates that Green Seal, an independent third party, has verified the environmentally innovative aspect(s) of a product. The certification includes verification that the product innovation results in a significant reduction of human health and environmental impacts compared to products of the same functional class.

Kaivac Univac and AutoVac Stretch – Innovation Criteria

Posted on by Anne Hancock

The public comment period for Kaivac has ended. Please see the final issued criteria here. 

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Program allows product manufacturers to explore environmental and health impacts, engage in transformative product innovation, and achieve global recognition to the newest sustainability standard. 

Kaivac, Inc is a member of the initial cohort of beta program participants who are pursuing certification of their products under the Environmental Innovation Standard (GS-20, Edition 2.0).  They submitted two products for the GS-20 Review: UnivacTM and AutoVacTM StretchTM with the same primary innovation claim: A significant reduction in the use of both  water and cleaning solutions  due to a high-flow fluid extraction method, debris filters, and the reuse of grey (recycled) water based cleaning solutions. 

According to Kaivac, these products are able to reduce the use-phase impacts of powered floor maintenance equipment by 66% for water and 70% for cleaning solutions compared to other powered floor cleaning equipment in the North American market. 

UnivacTM and AutoVacTM StretchTM
Standard: GS-20 Environmental Innovation
Start: 7/6/20
Stop: 8/6/20 11:59PM
Published: Yes   Kaivac’s Univac and AutoVac Stretch are used to clean hard surface commercial flooring. UniVac is designed to be used on hard-to-clean, heavily soiled grouted or obstructed floors, such as those found in commercial kitchens and restrooms. AutoVac Stretch is equipped with a trolley bucket and wide-area trailing squeegee to enable cleaning larger open hard-surface flooring (e.g., hallways, lobbies, gym floors, warehouse floors, etc.)   Innovation Claim Details   Kaivac claims that these products differ from other powered floor maintenance equipment on the market in two primary ways:  

  1. By reducing the typical water use rate by at least 66%
  2. By reducing the typical cleaning solution use rate by at least 70% while maintaining equivalent product performance to comparable alternatives.

The environmental innovation is achieved through the following design elements:

  1. The use of a high-flow fluid extraction method that removes soil and cleaning solution via a dual-blade squeegee head powered by a wet vacuum motor,
  2. The use of filters for debris and contaminants via a fine mesh filter bag and sedimentation trough, and
  3. The reuse of grey water based cleaning solution at least three times and up to seven times.

Green Seal has not yet validated any of these claims. Once Green Seal finalizes the requirements after this public comment period, Kaivac will submit documentation for third-party certification by Green Seal. The Univac and AutoVac Stretch will achieve Green Seal Certification for Environmental Innovation if all requirements within the Kaivac UniVac and AutoVac Stretch Criteria Document are met.

Environmental and Human Health Impacts

Over the lifecycle of powered floor maintenance equipment, the use phase has the most significant environmental and human health impacts through water use and cleaning solution use from normal operation.

Water Use Rate

According to the ISSA 612 Cleaning Times & Tasks book, comparable products such as floor scrubbers and autoscrubbers can clean 500 square feet per gallon of water on average depending on soil conditions. The applicant product is reported to clean 1500 to 3500 square feet per gallon of water depending on soil conditions.

Chemical Solution Use Rate

According to the ISSA 612 Cleaning Times & Tasks book, comparable products such as floor scrubbers and autoscrubbers typically use cleaning solution at a rate of 50 oz per 25,000 ft2. The applicant product is shown to have a cleaning solution use rate of 16 oz per 25,000 ft2. Cleaning solution metering is accomplished by using packets of pre-measured cleaning solution.

Chemical Hazards

Since the claims made in this certification relate to the efficiency of the product with regard to water use and cleaning solution use, the cleaning solution formulation was not reviewed for human and environmental hazards as part of the product innovation. Therefore, no claims shall be made in association with this certification as to the “safety” or “environmental preferability” of the parts or the cleaning solution formulation.

About Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard (GS-20) provides a framework for the certification of environmental innovations in a variety of product categories. Applicants follow the steps below to complete the process: 

ABCO Natura Yarn Mop Heads – Innovation Criteria

Posted on by Green Seal

Update: The public comment period for ABCO Products has ended. Green Seal accepted public comments between April 6, 2020 and May 7, 2020. Learn more about ABCO Products and its product certification status on Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Registry page.

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Beta Advisory Program allows product manufacturers to explore environmental and health impacts, engage in transformative product innovation, and achieve global recognition to a new type of sustainability standard. 

ABCO Products is a member of the initial cohort of beta program participants who are pursuing certification of their products under the Environmental Innovation Standard (GS-20, Edition 2.0).  The company submitted their NaturaYarn mop head for GS-20 Review with the following innovation claim: NaturaYarn mop heads are able to reduce environmental impacts as a result of proprietary equipment design using garment industry scraps resulting in 100% post-industrial reclaimed textile mop heads. 

According to ABCO Products, the NaturaYarn mop head eliminates the greenhouse gas impacts associated with extracting virgin materials for plastic textile production; the product eliminates the use of additional agrochemicals, water consumption, and disruption to habitats associated with growing and harvesting additional virgin cotton; and this product establishes a circular supply chain by increasing the value of and demand for post-industrial apparel scraps.

Seeking Feedback

Green Seal is seeking your feedback on the innovation criteria document, including innovation claims, impact analysis, and certification requirements for this product.  We invite all members of our stakeholder community and the general public to submit comments. Feedback will be accepted through 11:59PM ET on May 7, 2020.

About ABCO Products’ NaturaYarn

When used as intended, this product provides wet and dry floor care maintenance in commercial spaces including (but not limited to) industrial, hospitality, educational, and food service settings.

Innovation Claim Details

ABCO Products claims that through a proprietary equipment design resulting in mop heads made from 100% post-industrial blended cotton and polyester waste sourced from reclaimed textiles from garment manufacturing scrap, NaturaYarn mop heads are able to achieve a minimum of 20% reduction of two or more significant environmental or human health impacts associated with this product category.

The product design and manufacturing process leverages the textile waste material of a garment design center and promotes circularity within the apparel sector – one of the most well-documented and environmentally impactful manufacturing sectors. Textile waste is at an all-time global high; massive amounts of water and energy are used, and pollutants released into the environment, to generate textile material that would otherwise never reach an end user. 

In addition, ABCO has installed on-site solar arrays at its production facility to reduce energy demand from non-renewable sources during the manufacture of its mop heads. ABCO continues to increase the share of its energy demand from on-site, renewable sources.

Green Seal has not yet validated any of these claims. Once Green Seal finalizes the requirements after this public comment period, ABCO Products will submit documentation for third-party certification by Green Seal. NaturaYarn will achieve Green Seal Certification for Environmental Innovation if all requirements within the ABCO Products NaturaYarn Criteria Document are met.

Environmental and Human Health Impacts

Mop heads are commonly made from blends of cotton and synthetic materials. The production of both materials creates significant environmental impacts. 

Cotton serves as the basis for nearly 50 percent of the world’s clothes, household goods, and commercial products, and accounts for 85 percent of all natural fibers used in these materials. According to the World Wildlife Fund, “cotton’s most prominent environmental impacts result from the use of agrochemicals (especially pesticides), the consumption of water, and the conversion of habitat to agricultural use.  Conventional production practices for cotton involve the application of substantial fertilizers and pesticides. Pesticides threaten the quality of soil and water, as well as the health of biodiversity in and downstream from the fields. Heavy use of pesticides also raises concern for the health of farm workers and nearby populations.” The organization adds that “runoff of pesticides, fertilizers, and minerals from cotton fields contaminates rivers, lakes, wetlands, and underground aquifers. These pollutants affect biodiversity directly by immediate toxicity or indirectly through long-term accumulation.”

Synthetic fibers are made from synthesized polymers whose raw materials include petroleum-based chemicals. These material inputs  present significant resource extraction impacts, particularly related to greenhouse gas emissions. According to the World Wildlife Fund, polyester (a comparable synthetic material to nylon) requires 3-5 times more energy to produce than cotton textiles.

During the manufacturing phase, common environmental impacts from textile production (whether cotton or synthetic fiber) include soil and water quality degradation from toxic effluent emissions from wet treatment processes from the use of dyes, dye carriers, lubricants, detergents, and complexing agents.

According to van der Velden et. al., energy use for production of yarn, fabric, and the finished product (including shipping) is dependent on a wide range of variables related to the processes employed and the region of manufacturer. The variables include the type of fiber, the makeup, the dyestuff, the dyeing technique, and the machinery employed to produce the fiber. 

Learn more about the environmental and human health Impacts of this product category by downloading the Innovation Claims.

About Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard

Green Seal’s Environmental Innovation Standard (GS-20) provides a framework for the certification of environmental innovations in a variety of product categories. Applicants follow the steps below to complete the process: 

Green Seal GS-20 Environmental Innovation Cycle Graphic

Earning certification under the GS-20 Standard demonstrates that Green Seal, an independent third party, has verified the environmentally innovative aspect(s) of a product. The certification includes verification that the product innovation results in a significant reduction of human health and environmental impacts compared

Partnership Leads to Healthy Green Schools & Colleges Program

Posted on by Green Seal

For the past 30 years, Green Seal® has served as the nation’s most trusted ecolabel for products and services. Millions of Americans interact with a Green Seal label every day, from the cleaning procedures used in their office buildings to the low-VOC paint used on their bedroom walls. We have certified thousands of products, services, and spaces used by families, companies, government agencies, and institutions around the country. 

Now, we’re setting our sights on our nation’s schools: Green Seal is partnering with pioneer advocacy organization Healthy Schools Campaign (HSC) to create the Healthy Green Schools & Colleges Program. Together, we envision a world in which everyone has equitable access to schools that improve the health of people and the planet. Every day in the U.S. more than 76 million people from all walks of life spend time in a school or university as students, staff, and faculty. This partnership brings great opportunity to improve how schools serve our communities and empower them as change agents for a more sustainable society. 

Healthy Green Schools & Colleges will be a simple, effective, verifiable program to help schools with the why, what, and how of designing and implementing healthy green facilities management practices. Building on HSC’s popular 5 Steps to Green Cleaning in Schools and Green Seal’s industry-leading cleaning services standard (GS-42), the program will expand to address a range of issues including indoor air quality monitoring, integrated pest management, and procurement. And most important of all, we will make sure facilities teams and green school champions have the knowledge, resources, tools, and support they need to succeed.

As we begin this journey, we’d love to hear from you. What green practices have you implemented in your school? Are you interested but don’t know where to start? Healthy Green Schools & Colleges is here. We’re looking to connect with K-12 and higher-ed practitioners of all experience levels. It takes a village to improve the health of our kids, neighbors, and planet. There’s a lot of work to do, and we’re excited to get started.

30 Years Strong: A Look at Green Seal and Ecolabelling

Posted on by Doug Gatlin

If you follow us on social media, you probably already know that Green Seal is celebrating its 30th anniversary this month. Because anniversaries are a natural time to reflect, we’ve been looking back at our history and the role Green Seal has played in the wider story of the sustainability movement. We’ve also been digging into our archives to unearth public service announcements and news clips from our early years (preppy outfits included), and to reveal key moments where we catalyzed economy-wide shifts toward safer, greener products.  

You can see it all in our new interactive timeline, here. 

It is stunning to remember that just 50 years ago, there were no legal limits on how much pollution companies could dump into communities. Then, a burning river, a major oil spill, and growing unease about worsening air quality spurred a nationwide uprising that prompted the creation of the EPA and an era of environmental regulation. 

This combination of public demand and government action drove big strides in cleaning up some of the heaviest sources of toxic air and water pollution in America. But by 1990, it was clear that government regulation alone could not adequately address critical global challenges like climate change, water shortages and natural resource depletion. The world needed a new era of action by businesses, institutions and consumers on everything from energy and water efficiency to greening the supply chain, to creating healthier, greener spaces in which to work, learn and play.  

To meet these needs, environmental leaders largely turned their attention toward voluntary market-transformation initiatives that have created the basis of a new brand of environmentalism – Sustainability.  

When Green Seal launched in 1989, there was nothing like it in the United States: a non-profit organization committed to independently verifying sustainable products. Environmental movement leader Denis Hayes signed on as our first Chair and CEO, two decades after organizing the first Earth Day. The New York Times, the L.A. Times, Time Magazine and other major outlets covered Green Seal’s launch as a critical moment in the burgeoning green consumer movement – and it was.  

Thirty years later, Green Seal has driven transformational change in the definition of and demand for sustainable products.  Each year, Green Seal standards and certified products save millions of metric tons of C02 emissions; hundreds of thousands of pounds of VOC pollution; and half a billion pounds of organochloride pollution – and that’s just a partial list.  

More than 7 million children reduce their exposure to toxic chemicals and asthma triggers every day because they attend schools cleaned with Green Seal certified cleaning products. And more than 120 million square feet of office space, hospitals and other commercial spaces are significantly safer for occupants because of Green Seal’s paints and coatings standard.  

The sustainability movement today has evolved beyond product ecolabeling to new frontiers like zero-waste, circularity, social equity and health and wellness – all areas Green Seal is capturing in our new standards, programs and initiatives.  

Even as we appreciate all that we have achieved in 30 years, anniversaries are also a time to look ahead. As we consider our path for the next 30 years, we are keeping some key values in mind:

We are doubling down on making it simple for consumers to make healthier, greener choices. We will be even more clear that Green Seal-certified means no carcinogens, no mutagens, no reproductive toxins, and a deep-dive look at the product’s sustainability from raw materials extraction all the way to packaging.  

We are invested in a new, service-oriented model that recognizes that none of our achievements would be possible without our partners.  It is their commitment to and investment in green chemistry and innovation that transforms our ambitious standards from an academic exercise into scientific breakthroughs that make their way into the products people use every day.  

We are committed to expanding our impact in the marketplace. From our Formula Facts ingredient labels, to our Environmental Innovation program, to powerful new partnerships in the works, we will continue to invest in market transformation initiatives that bring Green Seal’s certified products, services and expertise to an even wider audience.

As we look back at where we started, one thing is clear: The ecolabeling movement that Green Seal pioneered is flourishing today, driven by a rising tide of consumer demand for more sustainable products, especially among those who are now steering the economy. A full 78 percent of Millennials believe sustainability is important and say they make sustainable choices – higher than any generation before them. 

Millennials face a very different challenge to that of the 1989 green consumer: they have too many ecolabels to navigate. Today, there are meaningless ecolabels that allow companies to self-certify, and single-attribute ecolabels that examine only one product feature and ignore other significant environmental impacts. Thirty years after we started this movement, people still want to know what is good from an authority they can trust.  And that’s still Green Seal.  

We’ll be celebrating key moments in our history and the impressive achievements of our partners for the rest of the year. Be sure to tune in on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Thank you for joining us on the journey to a healthier, greener planet. We’re looking forward to the amazing things we can do together over the next 30 years – starting now. 

Branch Creek De-Icer Melts Competition with Certification

Posted on by Green Seal
TELL US ABOUT YOUR NEW CHLORIDE-FREE ICE MELT.

Entry® uses a potassium formate blend that spares homes, residential yards, campuses and corporate parks from the hazardous and corrosive effects of rock salt and other chloride-based deicing products. By breaking down the hydrogen bonds that form when water freezes, Entry removes thin layers of ice and snow and prevents new ones from accumulating up to a freezing point of minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit, colder than any other product on the market.

WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE?

I knew we were entering a figurative lion’s den. The unregulated North American ice melt market is awash in inflated environmental claims and blatant greenwashing. Even if research and development panned out as hoped, our as-yet-unknown de-icer might not endure among louder, win-at-all-costs products and brands.

We can point to Entry’s Green Seal certification, and what it stands for, instead of engaging in evidence-free debates about a product’s environmental and performance claims.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE GREEN SEAL?

Green Seal’s criteria, designed to protect our planet and health, emphasize performance. It’s widely said – and I agree – that a product shouldn’t qualify as “green” if it doesn’t work as well as, or better than, other commercially available alternatives. After all, if a product’s better for the environment but doesn’t perform, have we really made progress or solved anything? And because Green Seal uses verifiable research and sound practices their benchmark becomes the market’s standard. 

HOW DOES BEING GREEN SEAL-CERTIFIED HELP DIFFERENTIATE ENTRY? 

If another product wants to make environmental or performance-related claims, we encourage them to pursue a similar certification. If they don’t, we can point to Entry’s Green Seal certification, and what it stands for, instead of engaging in evidence-free debates about a product’s environmental and performance claims.

HOW IS THE ENTRY DE-ICER BETTER FOR HUMAN HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT? 

Entry was designed from the molecular level to the final product packaging to reduce adverse environmental impacts, making it safer for families, pets, waterways, and floors. When rock salt and other calcium, sodium and magnesium granular chloride products seep into groundwater supplies or wash into lakes or streams, they reduce the available oxygen levels and threaten aquatic wildlife. Salt-based ice melters also can erode soil, kill plants, burn grasses, and burn the skin and eyes of people and pets.

HOW DOES THE GREEN SEAL STANDARD SUPPORT ENVIRONMENTAL INNOVATION?

The prospect of investing in a worthy product, only to have it get lost in a whirlwind of dishonesty, almost kept us from moving forward. The unchecked marketing claims in the ice melt market are particularly troublesome given the number of ice melts that claim to be high performance, pet safe, and/or environmentally sound without any independent verification. Consumers depend on these assurances. Much is at stake and much can be lost when they don’t deliver. People understandably have differing opinions about government regulation, but as a well-intentioned brand in an unregulated market, I crave the accountability that regulation provides.

ANYTHING ELSE YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE?

Green Seal verification of both environmental integrity and efficacy let Entry not only enter the market with a reputable ally behind it, but also let us introduce structure and accountability to the larger ice melt scene. Even with a Green Seal certification, Entry® chloride-free ice melt will face challenges. But carrying a highly regarded certification in a space that’s never had any standardization is, I think, a major step in the right direction – for our product and for us all. 

Your Feedback Is Key to the Success of Our Standards

Posted on by Green Seal

Over the past twenty-seven years, Green Seal has published dozens of environmental leadership standards and certified over 4,000 products. We have achieved the most success over these years in the cleaning product industry, and have invested greatly in helping manufacturers green their products. About one-third of our 27 active standards define environmental leadership for specific types of cleaning products. For cleaning product manufacturers and for institutional purchasers, Green Seal is a well-known product certifier. Our services are trusted and respected, and the Green Seal Certification Mark is a widely recognized symbol that shows that a product has been evaluated for both performance and environmental leadership. A key facet of our success has been that our certification process is transparent and scientific; certification is based on our accurate and publicly available environmental leadership standards.

Transparent Requirements to Achieve Certification 

To understand Green Seal certification, anyone can download a specific standard (a free PDF on our website) and note each of the requirements for performance, human health protection, and environmental leadership. For example, purchasers know that a Green Seal-certified cleaning product has demonstrated a specific level of performance, that it is not formulated with certain hazardous substances, and that it has an overall reduced environmental impact compared to most other products on the market.

A Bit of Maintenance: Keeping Our Standards Clear and Accurate

The guiding principles of a Type 1 Ecolabel require us to keep each of our standards relevant to today’s market, to ensure that they accurately define environmental leadership, and also to verify that the requirements are practical for certification. Our periodic assessments of each standard also include a review of the market to identify if relevant technologies and best practices have evolved. Green Seal references many external sources in our standards that make a revision necessary: ASTM and ISO update the names and criteria of their test methods; the OECD updates their suggested methods for evaluating chemicals, and the US EPA often increases the size and complexity of its environmental databases in response to newly published scientific studies. Also, the market is continuously evolving. Manufacturers are always developing new technologies and re-designing their products. For example, over the years companies have expanded their offerings of environmentally-preferable packaging. Source-reduced packaging, packaging take-back programs, and packaging made from higher percentages of post-consumer materials are being used by environmental leaders in the cleaning industry now, but were not widely available a decade ago. For our standard revisions, we note these types of changes and gauge whether an update is necessary.

Our 2016 – 2017 Standard Revision: Improving Nine Cleaning Product Standards

On November 15, we published a document with the proposed revisions to our cleaning product standards and opened the Public Comment Period. As a Type 1 Ecolabel that provides an independent and life-cycle based evaluation, we actively engage the public in our revision process. When each standard is developed, and again when each standard is revised, we widely announce a Public Comment Period. During this eight-week period (sometimes longer!), we promote our “Proposed Revisions” and request feedback from any interested individual, organization, or company.  We often receive detailed comments from product manufacturers (some with and some without Green Seal-certified products), product evaluators, advocates in public health, and experts from environmental organizations. Many individuals stay tuned in to ensure that Green Seal’s standards maintain the same level of stringency, and others chime in to make sure that our requirements describe a practical evaluation. Institutional purchasers stay involved in order to ensure that they can still depend on Green Seal-certified products as a way of obtaining their group’s sustainability goals.

…And the Comments Pour In

During the Public Comment Period, we encourage comments that directly reference our proposed revisions (nothing outside of the scope, please); comments that are science-based; a realistic viewpoint of industry; and comments that helpfully reference scientific or technical information. We have received supportive comments, neutral comments about editorial improvements or the flow of a standard, and critiques, and all help us to evaluate our proposed revisions. After we close the Public Comment Period, Green Seal publishes our “Response to Comments” document which includes each comment that was submitted through our online forum, and provides our direct reactions. Sometimes we are able to respond to each submitted comment but in some cases we provide one response to a group of comments that touch on the same issue. In our responses, we try to clearly state: Yes, the comment resulted in a change in the standard, or, No, we’re going to proceed as we originally proposed. For both cases we describe our reasoning. Sometimes, we also get in touch directly with the commenter to provide a more elaborate reaction to help them better understand our perspectives, our goals, and also to hear from them about their concerns and their reasoning. These types of conversations are greatly beneficial, and help us to stay informed on the issues and perspectives of our stakeholders.

Stay Engaged, Add Your Comment, and Encourage Feedback

Do you have expertise in the performance, or environmental and health impacts of cleaning products? Do you have a specific interest in one of our proposed revisions? We welcome you to register on our online forum and provide your comments. This is your chance to help define environmental leadership for the cleaning industry. If you do not have expertise in these topics or a strong understanding of the issues that are being proposed, but you are strongly interested in promoting environmental leadership, consider reaching out to a health or environmental organization, or to your favorite cleaning product brand, and ask them to provide their input on our proposed revisions. Our standards and certification process play a major role in reducing the environmental impacts of your state governments and schools, and help drive environmental improvements in the cleaning industry.