What makes a product green?

[tnnfH Dav is now behind us and -U.rthe media frenzy around all things green was impressive. Major retailers and manufacturers, from Wal-Mart to Clorox, sought to establish their green credentials. announcing initiatives. reformulated products, carbon offsets, and renewable energy plans.

As the news stories and advertising begin to subside, most of the rest of the retailing world is taking notice and asking what they can do to better address the rising demand for greener products and services.

In this, and future columns, we'll seek to answer those questions in ways that help retailers in the hardware and home improvement channel win over new customers and reinvigorate relationships with existing ones. So let's start with one of most frequent questions I'rn asked: What exactly is a "green" product?

As with most questions of this sort, there are simple answers and complex answers. Okay, simple answer first: green products pose no health threat to the user, are good (or at least not harmful) for the environment, and are made in ways that do not negatively affect the communities where they're made or the workers who make them. This. of course. is an ideal that most "green" products approach but cannot attain. Most production and distribution requires energy in the form offossil fuel, which canies with it negative impacts in the form of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

So let's look at a slightly more useful, more complex definition of what makes a product green. And to do that, we need to consider the context. Who's buying the products in the first place? In our business, we generally serve two types of customers, building professionals and consumers, each with their own set of motivations and criteria.

For professionals, the relevant context for products and materials is green building guidelines, such as LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), as well as numerous local and regional programs. These programs define design and construction criteria that make commercial or residential buildings energy and water efficient, healthy, and with minimal negative impact to the environment, specifying

By Jay Tompt

material and product characteristics that earn credits or points. Building projects that gain enough points are awarded green status, such Silver, Gold or Platinum in the case of LEED. Using lumber certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, for example, will earn LEED credits, as will using low-VOC paints, adhesives, caulks, materials with renewable or recycled content. etc.

While the USGBC and other programs don't identify specific product brands, other resources do. One of the best building product guides comes from Building Green, a respected organization that publishes the GreenSpec Cuides (also online at www. greenspec.com). These guides ostensibly cut through marketing noise to identify the best-in-class products for use in any green building project. If you're a retailer with a strong pro customer base, GreenSpec is a must-have publication for your buyers and contractor sales team.

For the consumer market, the task of identifying green products is a little more involved because there is no comprehensive program like LEED to guide product choices. A good place to start is with the consumers themselves. While green builders may be motivated by lower operating costs, enhanced rent and real estate values, or regulation (building green is becoming mandatory in some communities), consumers are increasingly motivated by concerns for the environment and personal health issues. It is this rising tide of shifting consumer attitudes that is powering the growth of Whole Foods, for example. These consumers tend to be skeptical of manufacturer claims, respond better to word of mouth than traditional advertising, and are ryilling pay a little more for a greener product.

Product certifications don't yet exist to help us identify products in every cate-gory for the increasingly green consumers. but they're catching r.rp. Ener-uy Star has bccn around firr a while, of coul'se. with ncarly univcrsal reco-cnition. and it's cxpanding to include electrical products such as cordless power tools. The EPA rcccntly introduced a similar prograrn lbr water-related products called WaterSense. which covers high efficiency toilets. faucets, showerheads, and irrigation products. The growing popularity of organic foods and other products has hclpccl tcl drivc dcmand fbr or-sanic supplies filr the giirden. Lawn and garden products that carry the OMRI (Organic Matcrials Rcvicw Institutc) label have bcen ccrtificd to cornply with thc USDA's National Organics Program. O1' coursc. thcre are other products in thcsc catcgorics that wor-rld certainly bc considcrccl grcen but aren't covered by thcsc ccrtifications. such as smart powe| strips that shut down phantonr energy loads, solar li-ehting. atnd composters.

Identifying green products firr thc rest of your store gets a little trickier. Cleaning products. for cxamplc. is probubll the most vcxing eatcr()r') because there's no trustworthy ccrtil'ication program and manufacturers arc not required to disclose ingredients. Unfilrtunately. unverified claims can't always be trusted and some claims. cvcn if verified. might not be relevant. For cxample, a household cleaning product might bc biodegradable, but may contain cthylcnc glycol, a chemical that stud ics havc showrr to be linked with rcproclLrctivc harm. That's obviously important sincc women are the primary uscrs ol'clcaning products in the hclrne.

There are a -lrowing number of products coming to market that clcr represent greener choices for both consumer and building professional, outpacin-t the ability of' ccrtil'icalions to keep up. By looking lbr products that conserve resources and promotc hcalthier livin-e, asking questions ol' your suppliers, and doing a little research. you can do a lot on your own to bcgin offbring greener choices to youf customcrs.

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