Last week the WTO announced a decision that the Dolphin Safe ecolabel is illegal on the grounds that it unnecessarily restricts trade and effectively blocks non-US suppliers from the American market.

Mexico initially filed the case contending they were being barred from the US market because of the Dolphin Safe label. Mexico’s tuna industry was crippled when Mexican-caught fish could not obtain the Dolphin Safe label, causing US tuna brands to exclude them.

The consequences of this decision remain to be seen, as the US retains its right to appeal. This decision was met with criticism from environmental groups, who see this as proof that the WTO is putting environmental concerns on the back-burner in favor of trade laws.

In the wake of this decision, is it possible that more businesses will file lawsuits against ecolabels, using similar arguments? If so, lawmakers may have to make difficult decisions regarding where to draw the line between commercial interests and the environment.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched a new tool this week aimed at providing more detailed sustainability information about products. It is called the Greener Products Portal and is available at: http://epa.gov/greenerproducts.

The portal’s search tool allows users to browse a broad range of products in various sectors of the economy. Once a product type is selected, you are provided with a list of those certifications, standards and ecolabels that the EPA has either developed or helped to develop that are associated with your choice.

For example, most searches for electronics will return the Energy Star certification as an option. Once you click on it, you can view various types of electronic products that are Energy Star certified.

The Greener Products Portal has search functions for consumers, retailers, manufacturers and institutional purchasers, with different programs associated with each user type. The goal is to help different sectors of the US economy more quickly find EPA standards associated with their field of work and understand which products are the most sustainable.

And of course, we are honoured to have Ecolabel Index listed as a resource for more information on the broader universe of ecolabels.

This week, AMR Marketing Research released figures detailing consumer awareness of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) ecolabel in Europe. In the Netherlands and Germany, approximately 35% of consumers are aware of the MSC label, which is notably higher than anywhere else. The Swedish are also setting a strong example with 23% of respondents saying they only buy MSC labeled seafood, and are prepared to switch supermarkets to get sustainable fish.

This survey is a testament to the hard work done by MSC in the past few years. While roughly one in four North Americans are aware of the label, this number has increased from less than one in ten only two years ago.

While the vast majority of consumers in developed countries are now aware of concepts like organic and fairtrade, the prevalence of ecolabels is relatively recent. If ecolabel awareness statistics continue to rise at the current rate it won’t be long before ecolabel certification becomes a key pre-requisite for eco-products, and ‘greenness’ becomes just as important as price and quality to a growing base of consumers.