NZ eco-labels get big tick internationally

A New Zealand eco-labelling scheme that tells consumers if furniture or paper products come from recycled or sustainable sources has been given a big tick in an international study.

Environment Minister Trevor Mallard congratulated Environmental Choice New Zealand for being chosen as an international model of best practice by Britain’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Defra cited Environmental Choice New Zealand, a government-initiated and endorsed scheme that certifies environmentally preferable paper and whether wood used in furniture and furniture products comes from sustainable sources, as the best international guide for people buying furniture and furniture products.

“This is a real feather in the cap of Environmental Choice New Zealand and helps reinforce New Zealand’s ‘clean green’ brand internationally,” Trevor Mallard said.

It puts Environmental Choice New Zealand in the same category as other eco-labels familiar to New Zealand consumers – Fairtrade and Energy Star – which were named as world leaders in the areas of food and office IT equipment.

Defra studied 207 standards and methods used to measure environmental sustainability of products worldwide and presented the best results to the British government as a model of international best practice.

Environmental Choice New Zealand is independently run by the NZ Ecolabelling Trust. The Ministry for the Environment owns the label.

“The origin of the things we buy and whether or not they are produced in a sustainable way has become a global issue for many consumers and it is good to know New Zealand is at the leading edge of global developments in this area,” Trevor Mallard said.

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