ECO Rating System For Promotional Gifts
In the promotional gifts and merchandising industry many suppliers and manufacturers have jumped onto the eco band wagon. Many now offer eco promotional gifts as alternatives to their traditional product ranges. A select few have even set up their stalls to offer only eco promotional gifts.
It is not uncommon for a growing number of end-user organisations to have environmental management policies, certifications and accreditations encouraging the purchase of eco-friendly products and services. The problem for buyers, when faced with requests to make a’green-purchase’ is one of how to identify the true eco-rating of a particular product. Supply companies can off course be ISO14001 (Environmental Standard) accredited but this relates to their operations and not necessarily the products or services they supply. Without a ‘green badge’ it is impossible for buyers to instantly recognise the true ‘eco’ merits of a promotional gift and see how this would comply with their environmental directives. For example a flashdrive made in Korea using an outer shell of bamboo or locally farmed wood is less environmentally friendly than a mouse mat made in the UK from recycled tyres.
With a market now aware of the availability of eco promotional gifts, (and their prices now more often than not comparable to traditionally manufactured gifts) Redbows believes that the time has come for a unified eco-friendly rating system. Promotional gifts manufacturers and suppliers need to now develop a unified, industry wide eco-rating system. One that provides clear information in terms of a rating system covering factors such as:
- country of manufacture: local to use or requiring importation and use of a transportation method
- percentage composition of recycled, organic or sustainably farmed materials, ROHS and Fairtrade etc
- energy usage during manufacture and cost of manufacturing off-shore in terms of environmental impact
- energy saving in use including self-powering via solar, wind, kinetics or water
- end of life disposal costs and process (WEE)
- packaging composition and disposal
This list is not exhaustive off-course and Redbows is challenging manufacturers to amend and add to it in the hope that a transparent eco-rating system can be developed. One that could even be extended to cover ethics and Human Rights in the countries of manufacture.
Perhaps the day will come when this is extended into a unique charter that could be picked-up and promoted by member organisations such as the BPMA or Promota.
So how would such a scheme benefit end-users and distributors? Take the ECO Gifts Store, as an example. Here clients can search for products using drop downs by material etc. This is a simple system developed by Redbows based on the information available from manufacturers and suppliers. Imagine if clients could select by an eco-rating system that offered different eco-levels. These levels, would help buyers clearly identify just how eco-friendly particular promotional gifts were and help them select the right products in line with their environmental objectives.
Posted in ECO Gifts
