Authored By: GUNN BHARDWAJ
Indian Institute of Management, Rohtak
Over the past several years, major fashion brands worldwide have increasingly marketed their products as “eco-friendly,” “ethical,” “green,” and “sustainable.” Collections are now routinely framed as “conscious fashion” or “environmentally responsible clothing,” and such language has become a core element of the fashion industry’s branding strategy. This shift has occurred alongside growing public awareness of the environmental harm associated with fast fashion, including excessive water use, textile waste, high carbon emissions, and exploitative production systems. Yet despite the proliferation of sustainability statements in advertising, many such claims remain vague, unverified, or misleading.
The fast fashion industry is, globally, one of the largest drivers of environmental harm. The United Nations Environment Programme has repeatedly identified the fashion sector as a major source of pollution, with textile manufacturing contributing substantially to greenhouse gas emissions and waste. At the same time, consumers increasingly rely on environmental claims when making purchasing decisions. This combination creates a genuine legal and regulatory problem: if fashion companies make exaggerated or deceptive sustainability claims, consumers may purchase products based on a mistaken understanding of their actual environmental impact. India currently has no legislative mechanism dedicated to regulating sustainability claims made by fashion brands. Existing laws, such as the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, along with general advertising regulation, do not together provide a comprehensive legal framework for protection against greenwashing. As a result, the law lacks an appropriate system to address these issues.
This paper argues that India’s existing legal regime is inadequate to regulate environmental deception in the fashion industry, and that a new legal framework is needed to curb the practice of greenwashing. The paper is organized into five parts. Part II examines the current legal regime in India. Part III addresses the problem of greenwashing in the fashion industry. Part IV considers comparative approaches to greenwashing regulation in the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Part V proposes reforms for India.
II. Existing Legal Framework
A. Consumer Protection Act, 2019
The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 is arguably the most relevant legal instrument currently available to address misleading sustainability claims in India. The Act prohibits unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements that deceive consumers regarding the quality and characteristics of products or services. “Unfair trade practice” is broadly defined under Section 2(47) as any act by a business owner or trader that includes a false representation of the quality or standard of goods being offered or sold. Environmental claims made by fashion houses would fall within the scope of unfair trade practice where such claims regarding product sustainability are misleading.
“Misleading advertisement” is separately defined under Section 2(28) of the Act as an advertisement that includes a false representation of a product or fails to disclose material information about it. Fashion houses frequently use terms such as “green,” “eco-friendly,” and “planet-friendly” without providing any concrete substantiation for these claims.
The Act also establishes the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), whose mandate includes investigating misleading advertisements and ensuring compliance. The CCPA has the power to order an end to misleading advertising practices and to impose penalties on both endorsers and manufacturers. However, despite these powers, the CCPA has been largely unable to enforce action against environmental claims specifically. A central weakness of the Act is its failure to provide statutory definitions for environmental terms such as “sustainable fashion,” “recycled clothing,” and “carbon-neutral manufacturing.” This absence of defined terms leaves considerable room for loopholes in organizations’ environmental claims.
B. Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI)
The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) is an important self-regulatory body that seeks to ensure ethical advertising. Under ASCI’s code of self-regulation, advertisements may not be based on false claims, and ASCI has issued specific guidelines on environmental claims in advertising. These guidelines require that any environmental claim made in an advertisement be verifiable, and that no such claim be made without adequate support.
Despite these guidelines, ASCI’s framework remains vulnerable to circumvention, primarily because the entire process is voluntary. ASCI has no statutory or legislative enforcement powers. As a result, fashion companies may exaggerate sustainability claims without fear of legal consequence. A company may comply with the minimum environmental requirements imposed by law while still misleading consumers about its overall environmental performance through advertising. In effect, existing regulation focuses on the production process itself rather than on whether consumers are being deceived.
C. Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020
As fashion retail increasingly moves online, regulating environmental claims has become more complex. Fashion items sold through online platforms rely heavily on digital marketing to highlight sustainability branding. The Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 impose certain obligations on online fashion retailers regarding fair business dealings and the avoidance of misleading advertisements, including disclosure of relevant product details.
However, the Rules impose no specific obligations regarding environmental claims. Online platforms function merely as intermediaries that host environmental claims generated by advertisers and manufacturers, which raises unresolved questions of liability. Fashion companies also face enforcement challenges arising from influencer marketing, as influencers frequently promote “environmentally sustainable” fashion items without independently verifying the underlying environmental claims.
D. Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 is India’s most significant environmental statute. It grants the Central Government authority to take action to protect and improve the environment. While the Act regulates industrial pollution and environmental compliance, its connection to fashion advertising is indirect at best.
Industrial establishments may fall within the Act’s scope in relation to water discharge, chemical use, and waste management. However, the Act does not address whether a firm’s sustainability claims are accurate. This means that a firm may comply fully with environmental law while still misleading consumers about its actual environmental performance.
III. Greenwashing in the Fashion Industry
A. The Definition of Greenwashing
Greenwashing refers to misleading communication suggesting that goods, services, or broader company operations are more environmentally beneficial or sustainable than they actually are. It is common in the fashion industry and tends to occur in two forms: misleading claims about a specific brand, or misleading claims about environmental impact more generally. Fashion brands frequently promote individual “eco-friendly” collections while continuing to operate on a model of mass production and overconsumption that remains environmentally harmful overall. Brands often highlight a single environmentally favorable initiative without disclosing the broader, less sustainable scope of their operations.
Examples of greenwashing in the fashion industry include garments marketed as made from “recycled materials” despite containing only a small proportion of recycled content, as well as items labeled “consciously produced” or “responsibly sourced.” Greenwashing is particularly difficult to regulate because it involves distorting environmental information that is inherently difficult to measure or verify.
B. Consumer Manipulation through Information Asymmetry
Greenwashing creates an information asymmetry between a company and its customers: the company has full access to information about its supply chain, manufacturing processes, and environmental and labor policies, while consumers rely almost entirely on the company’s own branding. This asymmetry allows businesses to shape consumer perception by constructing favorable sustainability narratives. As environmental awareness grows, consumers are increasingly willing to pay a premium for products perceived as eco-friendly.
Evaluating a product’s genuine sustainability and environmental footprint is a technical exercise requiring consideration of carbon footprint, water use, labor practices, transportation, and waste management, among other factors — well beyond the knowledge of the average consumer. Consumer protection law generally prohibits deceptive advertising, but the vagueness of sustainability terminology allows companies to avoid offering precise, legally challengeable definitions. Terms such as “eco-friendly” or “environmentally friendly” are often used purely as marketing devices without substantive basis.
C. The Lack of Sustainability Metrics in Fashion Law
A further problem with India’s regulatory framework is the absence of standardized sustainability metrics for the fashion sector. While metrics exist for nutritional value in food products and energy efficiency in appliances, no comparable metrics exist for environmental performance in fashion. This gap effectively allows companies to control which information they choose to disclose. A business may, for example, publicize its use of organic materials while omitting data on water usage, labor conditions, or transportation-related carbon emissions. Without standardized metrics, it remains difficult for consumers to determine which fashion products are genuinely sustainable.
A related problem concerns sustainability certification audits. Numerous certification schemes have emerged, based on differing and sometimes incomplete standards; some audits assess a product’s full environmental footprint, while others cover only limited aspects. India currently has no regulatory framework governing sustainability certification.
D. Environmental and Social Impact
The consequences of greenwashing extend beyond consumers alone. Because greenwashing allows a company to appear sustainable without making substantive changes to its operations, it removes much of the market pressure that would otherwise drive genuine reform — companies face little incentive to improve their practices if the appearance of sustainability already satisfies consumer demand.
Fast fashion, by its nature, involves the rapid production, purchase, and disposal of inexpensive clothing, generating textile waste, microplastics, high water consumption, and significant carbon emissions. Through greenwashing, firms continue operating largely as before while presenting themselves publicly as environmentally responsible. Greenwashing may also undermine the long-term viability of companies that pursue genuine sustainability, since authentic sustainable practices typically require additional investment that greenwashing firms avoid.
IV. Comparative Perspectives
A. European Union
The European Union currently leads global efforts to formulate guidelines on environmental claims and sustainable practices. In response to widespread greenwashing, the European Commission introduced the Green Claims Directive to strengthen protection against fraudulent claims about the environmental friendliness of products or services.
Under the proposed regulation, companies making environmental claims must substantiate them through independent scientific verification. Terms such as “environmentally friendly” or “green” may not be used unless they meet an established regulatory standard. The European Union has also introduced broader sustainability disclosure requirements for corporations through the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
This reflects a shift from voluntary disclosure toward mandatory regulatory measures, reflecting an acknowledgment that voluntary approaches alone are insufficient. India can draw from the European experience the lesson that genuine sustainability assurance requires enforceable standards, rather than reliance on voluntary compliance by firms.
B. United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has likewise introduced measures to address greenwashing, primarily through regulatory guidance. The Green Claims Code, issued by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), sets out six key principles for environmental claims. The first requires that claims be clear, verifiable, and accurate; the second requires that claims account for a product’s entire lifecycle rather than highlighting only positive aspects in isolation.
UK regulators have intervened in specific cases where fashion brands were alleged to have used environmentally deceptive advertising practices, and regulatory scrutiny has expanded to cover “sustainability collections” and the manner in which fashion companies disclose relevant information. Critics of the UK model argue, however, that its reliance on regulatory discretion, rather than clear statutory obligations, weakens enforcement against fashion-sector greenwashing.
C. United States
In the United States, fashion sustainability claims fall within the regulatory mandate of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) through its Green Guides. The Green Guides are designed to make environmental claims understandable to consumers and caution against vague general claims, emphasizing the need for proper substantiation of specific claims relating to recyclability, biodegradability, and carbon neutrality.
The US approach nonetheless has notable limitations, particularly the lack of coordinated federal-state consumer protection regulation specific to sustainability claims. Despite these limitations, the US experience underscores the value of detailed regulatory guidance in clarifying which marketing practices are permissible.
V. Proposed Reforms in the Indian Scenario
A. Enactment of a Specialized Green Claims System
India should enact a dedicated statutory framework to regulate environmental claims and green credentials asserted by industries, particularly fashion and textiles. This framework should provide clear statutory definitions for terms such as “sustainable,” “eco-friendly,” “recycled,” and “carbon neutral,” which companies could not use unless they satisfy defined regulatory standards. Statutory definitions of this kind would create greater clarity for businesses and would assist courts and regulators in assessing claims of misrepresentation.
B. Compulsory Sustainability Reporting
Fashion brands above a specified turnover threshold should be required to disclose sustainability information covering the following:
- Material sourcing
- Water use
- Carbon dioxide emissions
- Waste generation
- Working conditions
- Recycling practices
Mandating such disclosure for qualifying fashion businesses would allow consumers to meaningfully compare products across companies and would reduce the risk of selective or biased reporting.
C. Verification and Certification
Environmental impact claims should be subject to independent verification by accredited certifying bodies; self-certification alone is insufficient for claims involving significant sustainability assertions. India could establish a government-recognized sustainability certification program specific to fashion and textiles. Independent verification of this kind would build consumer confidence and reduce fraudulent claims.
D. Building Enforcement Capability
The powers of the Central Consumer Protection Authority should be strengthened to address greenwashing specifically. Regulators should have the authority to:
- Direct corrective advertising
- Impose substantial financial penalties
- Require companies to produce evidence substantiating their claims
- Investigate supply-chain-related claims, and
- Regulate sustainability branding practices
Enforcement capacity should also be extended to cover digital platforms and influencer marketing.
E. Promoting Sustainable Business Practices
Legislation should not only penalize false claims but also actively encourage genuinely sustainable practices through incentives such as tax relief, certification benefits, and preferential treatment in government procurement for environmentally sound producers. At the same time, policymakers should ensure that new compliance requirements do not impose disproportionate burdens on small businesses and independent designers.
Conclusion
The rise of sustainability marketing in the fashion industry reflects growing consumer awareness and rising expectations of corporate environmental responsibility. However, the rise in greenwashing cases exposes significant gaps in India’s current legislative response to environmental claims in fashion advertising.
The analysis presented in this paper demonstrates the need for more cohesive regulation of fashion advertising and the sustainability claims associated with it in India. The absence of clear definitions and standards makes it easier for companies to exploit consumers’ genuine interest in environmental protection. Comparative frameworks in the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States demonstrate the need for stronger regulatory intervention, and suggest that India, too, should develop a dedicated framework for green claims grounded in clear legal definitions, mandatory sustainability disclosure, independent certification, and stronger enforcement.
Regulating greenwashing cannot be treated as a matter of marketing ethics alone. It is fundamentally a question of consumer protection, environmental integrity, and fair competition in the marketplace. As the fashion sector continues to grow in India and globally, the law must evolve to ensure transparency and verifiability in environmental claims.
