Yikes! Walmart and Kohl’s have agreed to pay a total of $5.5 million after being accused of falsely advertising rayon homewares as “eco-friendly” bamboo products, according to a statement the U.S. Department of Justice made. Kohl’s will pay a $2.5 million penalty, while Walmart will pay $3 million. The orders for these penalties were filed in a D.C. federal court on April 8.
That’s right: the towels, sheets, blankets, and dozens of other products these stores claimed were made of 100% eco-friendly bamboo (or a combination of bamboo and cotton) are actually mostly made of rayon, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
While bamboo was used to make these products, it turns out that it was first treated with toxic chemicals and turned into rayon. That doesn’t sound very eco-friendly to us!
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It's no wonder these stores were called out for their misleading marketing; rayon derived from bamboo is certainly not the same thing as actual bamboo. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission noted in a statement that the products "did not contain bamboo fibers."
What's even wilder is that Walmart and Kohl's claimed these rayon-based fabrics were "free of harmful chemicals" and made with "clean, non-toxic materials." Meanwhile, in order for the bamboo to be turned into rayon, it had to undergo a process involving toxic chemicals that emitted harmful pollutants into the air.
So, it's safe to say that these products were neither made of bamboo nor eco-friendly in any capacity. This type of false advertising from corporations an attempt to appear more environmentally friendly is known as "greenwashing."
Samuel Levine, FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Director, commented on the matter, warning that corporations shouldn't expect to get away with pulling the wool over everyone's eyes like this. "False environmental claims harm both consumers and honest businesses, and companies that greenwash can expect to pay a price," he said.
In addition to paying the penalties, Walmart and Kohl's will both be monitored for compliance as they make efforts to improve their recordkeeping.
