"When it comes to labels assuring consumers that they’re buying green products, buyer beware. In theory such labels are intended to help shoppers make responsible choices. But many of these labeling and certification programs are overseen by the industry they are supposedly policing."
"That is the case made against the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, which has been in the cross hairs of the environmental group ForestEthics for two years. The S.F.I. label, founded in 1994, certifies that logging projects in North America are environmentally sustainable. But ForestEthics contends that nearly all of the initiative’s financing is provided by the companies that own or manage the land that S.F.I. certifies as meeting good environmental standards. S.F.I. audits of land practices do not identify major problems, it adds.
'Instead, S.F.I. spends millions of dollars every year to advertise that it is ‘good for forests’ when it approves large-scale timber operations that impair fish and wildlife habitat, cause landslides and pollute water,' the group asserts."
Elisabeth Rosenthal reports for the New York Times' Green blog May 15, 2012.
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