Eco-Standards, Product Labelling and Green Consumerism

As conscientious consumers, we have become overwhelmed with alarms about food contamination, over-fishing, clear-felled forests, loss of biodiversity, climate change, chemical pollution, and other environmental and health-related risks. This book is an analysis of a primary set of tools aimed at dealing with these risks: green labels and other eco-standards. The authors address political, regulatory, discursive, and organizational circumstances and raise the questions: how can ecological complexities be translated into a trustworthy and categorical label? Is there a mismatch between the production and consumption of green labels? Is it possible to achieve broad public participation in environmental issues through labelling? This is a timely book that provides a social and policy-oriented analysis of the challenges for green consumerism through green labelling.

MAGNUS BOSTROM is Associate Professor in Sociology and Environmental Lecturer at SOdertOrn University College, Sweden. He studies environmental action, policy making, rule setting, green political consumerism, and sustainability projects in various sectors. He is co-editor of Organizing Transnational Accountability.

MIKAEL KLINTMAN is Associate Professor at the Research Policy Institute, Lund University, Sweden. His research areas include environmental governance, ethical and political consumerism and the sociology of consumption.