Greenwashing accusations with the Watch: DUH wins against Apple
Apple claims that certain Apple Watch models are COâ‚‚-neutral. Deutsche Umwelthilfe had filed a lawsuit against this, as Apple uses compensation projects.
Image from Apple's "Mother Nature" commercial, in which the company focused on climate neutrality projects, among other things.
(Image: Apple)
Apple will no longer be allowed to advertise its computer watches as CO₂-neutral –, at least in Germany. The Frankfurt Regional Court prohibited such advertising as misleading and thus followed the arguments of Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH), which had filed an action for an injunction (case number 3-06 O 8/24). DUH considers Apple's advertising for the Apple Watch to be greenwashing, as the company does not manufacture and sell the watch in a completely climate-neutral way, but also uses compensation projects to do so. The latter are considered controversial, but Apple argues that the final step towards carbon neutrality cannot be achieved otherwise.
Ruling not yet legally binding
DUH welcomed the ruling, although it is not yet legally binding – Apple may still appeal. However, the designation of the Watch as "CO₂-neutral" must be refrained from until the final decision. The court has set the fine for violations at 250,000 euros per case. DUH Managing Director Jürgen Resch said in a statement that Apple is falsely creating the impression that its watches advertised as CO₂-neutral have a balanced CO₂ footprint.
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"This promise deceives consumers because it is based on COâ‚‚ emissions trading with an unsuitable offsetting project." According to Resch, the "alleged COâ‚‚ storage" in commercial eucalyptus plantations is limited to just a few years. "The contractual guarantees for the future are not sufficient and the ecological integrity of the monoculture areas is not guaranteed."
Advertising for eco-watches since 2023
Two years ago, Apple advertised three of its smartwatch models as "COâ‚‚-neutral". According to the company, the majority of emissions are already avoided during production and transportation. Only a "small remainder" would have to be offset via nature-based compensation projects. The DUH sees this as greenwashing. The farms would be deforested every 14 years. At the first hearing in June, the judges had already indicated that the compensation projects used by Apple may not be long-term enough. The company admitted that only 25 percent of the area in a reforestation project in Paraguay had been secured for the long term and that individual areas had only been leased until 2029, according to the news agency dpa. The court wanted a period from 2045 to 2050.
Apple believes it is in the right despite the criticism. The products are therefore the result of important innovations in the field of renewables and a COâ‚‚-neutral design. Apple also emphasizes that it only invests in selected carbon offset projects. The company wants to become climate-neutral across the entire supply chain by 2030, but this still includes offsetting. It initially remained unclear whether Apple would appeal against the ruling in Frankfurt. The EU wants to tighten the reins on climate claims in advertising from 2026 and ban certain statements.
Apple has now issued a statement on the ruling. It says that Apple remains committed to “continuing to reduce emissions through industry-leading innovations in clean energy, low-carbon design,” and more. “Importantly, the court has fundamentally affirmed our rigorous approach to carbon neutrality.” With its measures, Apple is “on track to make our entire supply chain carbon neutral by 2030.” The company also referred to an article published last week in US business magazine Fast Company. It states that Apple intends to stop using the term on packaging, in advertisements, and on product pages in the future due to the new EU regulations.
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