Shops that sell clothing or cosmetics often use words such as “recycled,” “natural,” “vegan,” or “organic” when promoting their products. These terms are frequently combined with labels or other cues designed to suggest that a product is environmentally friendly—without explicitly stating it.
Marketing that claims a product is environmentally friendly without adequate evidence is often referred to as greenwashing, and it can be illegal.
When researchers scraped Instagram and TikTok for the word “sustainable” in combination with “clothing” or “cosmetics,” they found surprisingly few direct claims that products were environmentally friendly.
“We searched for keywords such as ‘clothing’ and ‘cosmetics’ used together with sustainability, but we found very little,” says SIFO researcher Anna Schytte Sigaard at OsloMet.
Together with her colleagues, Sigaard conducted a study commissioned by the Norwegian Ministry of Children and Families on how consumers perceive sustainability in marketing.
“Our results show that markets are so complex and opaque that there is a limit to how much responsibility can reasonably be placed on consumers,” says SIFO researcher Anna Schytte Sigaard. Photo: Sonja Balci/OsloMet
New regulations: Sustainability must be documented
Although fit, comfort, price and style matter more to most consumers than sustainability, the majority still say they want to make sustainable choices when buying clothing or cosmetics. Retailers are well aware of this, and the study shows that they use a wide range of methods to persuade consumers to shop with them.
SIFO conducted a similar study in 2021 and found that many consumers struggled to know what to trust. “Why can’t all products just be sustainable?” was the statement that best summed up that study.
Since then, regulations targeting greenwashing have been tightened, including through the EU’s Green Claims Directive. It is no longer legal to claim that something is sustainable without being able to document it. However, this has not made life easier for consumers. Instead, companies now rely on more indirect ways of communicating sustainability.
Few explicit sustainability claims
The researchers show this through two separate methods: web scraping and a survey.
Web scraping refers to software that scans TikTok and Instagram for sustainability claims. Companies mainly market themselves on Instagram, while TikTok mostly contains content created by influencers. The researchers found that the term “sustainable” appeared only rarely on social media.
“Instead, companies use visual elements such as backgrounds and colours. They showcase materials and emphasise the stories around the products. In cosmetics, terms like natural, organic or vegan are commonly used,” says Sigaard.
Product descriptions and labels matter
The survey was conducted with a representative sample of the population, with a total of 1,521 respondents, and included a visual, experimental component. Using AI, the researchers created product pages for two fictitious online clothing stores: one large, international retailer and one smaller Norwegian brand store. Both “stores” sold simple white T‑shirts.
Respondents were presented with different versions of the product pages, where visual design, types of information, price and certifications varied. The T‑shirts were displayed against two different backgrounds: one with an industrial feel and one with a green, natural setting. Participants were then asked to assess which T‑shirt they perceived as the most sustainable.
Although the web‑scraping results suggested that visual elements play an important role, the experiment revealed that respondents prioritized other factors.
“Product descriptions and concrete claims explaining how the item is sustainable were viewed positively by respondents,” says Sigaard.
“The visual design of the page played a minor role, while labels and certifications were important to people,” she adds.
Consumers cannot tell labels apart
There is a jungle of labels and certifications on the market, and most consumers are familiar with only a few of them. Even so, labels make companies appear more credible, and consumers tend to trust them.
The challenge is that certified third‑party labels—such as GOTS or the Nordic Swan Ecolabel—compete for attention with companies’ own labels, for example H&M Conscious. Consumers simply struggle to distinguish between them.
“This shows that there is a strong need for recognizable and trustworthy labels and certifications,” says Sigaard.
“Consumer authorities and consumer organizations have an important role to play here.”
Influencers rank lowest in trust
In line with the 2021 study, consumers report uncertainty, scepticism and limited trust in companies’ sustainability claims. The survey shows that respondents who have high trust in public authorities and certification schemes are also more likely to trust sustainability claims. Conversely, those with the highest levels of education and knowledge are the most sceptical.
Women tend to trust environmental information more than men, while men were more likely to say that cosmetics were not relevant to them.
“Influencers rank at the very bottom when it comes to trust—below even Chinese brands. We say we don’t trust them, yet we still follow them,” says Sigaard.
Regulation is still needed
Although EU regulations are tightening the rules around false sustainability claims, the researchers argue that there is still a strong need for clear consumer guidance, market surveillance and enforcement of existing regulations.
“Our results show that markets are so complex and opaque that there is a limit to how much responsibility can reasonably be placed on consumers,” says Sigaard.
Reference
Anna Schytte Sigaard, Helen Teigen, Marie Hebrok and Harald Throne‑Holst:
Green marketing or greenwashing? Consumer perceptions of sustainability claims in clothing and cosmetics (nva.sikt.no). SIFO Report 2–2026.
What is greenwashing?
Greenwashing refers to inaccurate, undocumented or irrelevant claims about the environmental benefits of a product or a company.
Greenwashing is a growing phenomenon due to increased attention to environmental impacts, including climate impacts, and a corresponding willingness to use environmental claims as sales arguments—also known as green marketing.
Read the full explanation of greenwashing in the Store norske leksikon (snl.no).
