Be Planet? We’ll See. An official greenwashing investigation into lululemon is now underway by Canada’s Competition Bureau

In the three years since lululemon started claiming to “Be Planet,” its emissions from making its products have doubled. It has transported more of its products by plane, the most carbon-polluting method, than almost any other brand. And it still refuses to say that it will stop burning fossil fuels to make its clothes. Be Planet? Looks a lot like greenwashing to me.

In February, Stand.earth said enough is enough, and filed a complaint with Canada’s Competition Bureau– the consumer protection agency in Canada that oversees fair and honest business practices – including false advertising and greenwashing.  

The Competition Bureau reviews complaints, decides on whether it could have cause to charge them with breaking the Competition Act, and then chooses whether to investigate. And guess what? We just learned that the Competition Bureau has heard our concerns, and is officially investigating Lululemon. 

This is a huge moment, which has the potential to mean a lot more than just a reckoning for lululemon.

Greenwashing Problem

Greenwashing has been hitting the news a lot recently, and for good reason – it’s becoming an alarming and dangerous trend. Companies know that people are worried, and anxious about climate or environmental issues, and want to feel good about their choices. And they are trying to turn that worry into profit. 

Unfortunately, what makes greenwashing so dangerous is exactly why fashion companies are so darn good at it. It all comes down to branding and telling us the things that we want to hear. And well, if lululemon isn’t a prime example of a brand successfully selling a lifestyle dream then I don’t know who is.  

The fashion industry is responsible for somewhere between 2 and 8% of global emissions, is one of the most water-intensive industries in the world, and is releasing millions of tiny toxic microplastics into the oceans and waterways each year from clothes made from petrochemicals. With all this harm, brands like lululemon shouldn’t be able to say that their “products and actions avoid environmental harm and contribute to restoring a healthy planet,” (yes, really) unless they’re doing something pretty special – and Lulu is not.

Fashion companies get away with a lot both because they’re good at selling the dream, and because it’s only recently that these claims are starting to get the scrutiny they deserve. Even though the Competition Bureau in Canada has some power to enforce action against misinformation and greenwashing, it can be a long and difficult process. The Competition Act, the law that companies that greenwash are breaking, leaves a lot of room for interpretation, and that can lead to companies getting away with some pretty shocking claims. 

Are companies “Future Washing”?

This problem is especially real when it comes to future claims, what research professor and greenwashing expert Dr. Wren Montgomery calls “future washing”. That’s when companies make promises about their future progress, often many years away, without showing how they’ll actually achieve it or what they are doing right now.  Think “net zero by 2040” or “carbon neutral by 2050”. Or, to quote lululemon’s sustainability page, “Our intent is to make products that are better in every way for people and the planet”. 

Things may be changing. Canada’s competition commissioner recently pushed for more scrutiny on green claims in response to proposed amendments to tighten up the Competition Act. In the EU, new regulations were adopted in March which put the spotlight firmly on brands to prove what they are saying is true, from repairability to vague representations like “eco” or “green”. 

We should always be wary when a company promotes the idea that we can buy our way to sustainability. But for now, lululemon has a clear choice: stop claiming to be green, or make it true, and act now to kick fossil fuels out of your supply chain.