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Wal-Mart Plans Eco-Rating Labels

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Jul 15, 2009 6:15 PM CDT

(Newser) – Wal-Mart plans to begin asking suppliers to provide info on the environmental impact of their operations so the store can put so-called green rating labels on its products, the Wall Street Journal reports.The first cards probably won't appear for a few years, but given Wal-Mart's clout as the world's biggest retailer, the move could have a profound effect on the entire industry. Some say it could mean higher prices as well.

The rating system—Wal-Mart appears to be trying to get out in front of any government regulations—could backfire if information is presented as mere “eco-babble” opaque to consumers, the Journal notes. But one Wal-Mart adviser, a professor, thinks the program is revelatory. Even carbon-neutral products can be “detrimental to human health in other ways,” he said. “So you have to look comprehensively at what sustainability really means, and that is what Wal-Mart is trying to do here in a very big way.”

Shoppers leave a Wal-Mart store in Danvers, Mass.
Shoppers leave a Wal-Mart store in Danvers, Mass.   (AP Photo)
A cashier bags purchases at a Wal-Mart store in the Porter Ranch area of Los Angeles.
A cashier bags purchases at a Wal-Mart store in the Porter Ranch area of Los Angeles.   (AP Photo)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 7 comments
OWLWOMANXXXX
Jul 16, 2009 12:55 PM CDT
now if we can get people to stop using so many plastic bags
Snowleopard
Jul 16, 2009 12:27 PM CDT
props to wal-mart for doing this without being forced to do so.
JonmarkP
Jul 16, 2009 5:31 AM CDT
Screw Wal-Mart, there is NOTHING they can do that would impress me favorably. They screw their workers, their suppliers, their clientele and the communities where they build their stores.

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