Scope
All marketers of products/services with environmental claims in US commerce
United States · guidance
FTC Green Guides
16 CFR Part 260 (Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims)
Penalties
FTC Act s.5 enforcement; civil penalties via Penalty Offense Authority notices
Last verified
2026-08-25
In plain language
What this law does
Guides for environmental marketing claims under FTC Act s.5: claims need competent and reliable scientific evidence with clear qualification. The 2012 version remains in force; a revision under review since December 2022 is expected during 2026.
Formal requirements
What the law requires
Reviewed provisions grouped by practical purpose. Use the official text for the full legal context.
Who and what it covers
General Dictionary termEnvironmental benefitAny representation tied to protecting/restoring the environment or mitigating climate change — read broadlyRead the full definition claim
16 CFR 260.4 — FTC Green Guides (16 CFR Part 260) · instrument-level citation
Dictionary
Key terms for this law
Terms with a retained, published connection to this legal source.
- Carbon offset claim16 CFR 260.5
- Certification / seal of approval16 CFR 260.6
- Compostable16 CFR 260.7
- Free-of claim16 CFR 260.9
- Non-toxic16 CFR 260.10
- Renewable energy claim16 CFR 260.11
- Renewable materials claim16 CFR 260.12
- Refillable16 CFR 260.14
- Ozone-safe / ozone-friendly16 CFR 260.15
- BiodegradableUS FTC Green Guides, 16 CFR 260.8(a)–(d)
- Recycled contentUS FTC Green Guides, 16 CFR 260.13(a)–(d)
Claims
Explore claims affected by this source
Search or filter the reviewed connections, then open one claim for its full market-by-market assessment.
164 of 164 connected claims shown
Examples in this selection
- Carbon Climate
- Carbon Climate
- Carbon Climate
- Carbon Climate
- Carbon Climate
- Carbon Climate
- Carbon Climate
- Carbon Climate