We live in an age when everyone wants to be seen to be green, but also one in which cynics will never be slow to level accusations of ‘greenwashing’. For this reason, it is crucial to ensure your business lives up to its commitments and is seen to be doing so.
Some organisations go a very long way to try to highlight their credentials or project a more environmentally friendly image. A curious instance that has just arisen is that of the Brecon Beacons National Park in mid-Wales, which has announced it is to be rebranded with the Welsh name Bannau Brycheiniog.
The rationale is ostensibly environmental, since the inclusion of the word ‘beacons’ has been deemed inappropriate as it refers to a carbon-burning activity.
While some may suggest it is simply copying Snowdonia, which recently adopted the Welsh names of Eryri for the national park and Yr Wydffa for Snowdon itself, others have questioned the relevance of the change to environmental issues, including public figures like Cardiff-born BBC presenter John Humphrys, who accused the national park authority of pointless virtue signalling.
However, the rebrand may actually have some significant benefits, ones that could be relevant to your business if it is switching to sustainable branded takeaway packaging, especially if this is part of a marketing and rebranding exercise.
Humphrys wrote in the Daily Telegraph that he suspected most people visiting national parks needed no reminding of their role in protecting the environment against issues like climate change, but that may not always be the case; a lot of the work done in these protected areas can go under the radar unless attention is drawn to it.
In the case of the Brecon Beacons / Bannau Brycheiniog, activities such as its role in Wales Climate Week, the use of an electric-powered events van or its guidance for visitors on how to make a trip to the national park greener are the kind of positives that can gain more attention under the additional scrutiny publicity over the name change may prompt.
Anyone looking for signs of ‘greenwashing’ may be in for a pleasant surprise when they see these steps and others taken by the park authority, and in the same way – by ensuring your use of sustainable packaging fits with any logo change, new mission statement or anything else that may be displayed on your packaging – any scrutiny applied may help to highlight your own green credentials.
Of course, there are other ways in which a company producing and packaging food items is a completely different entity from a large expanse of rural upland. For instance, politicised arguments about the Welsh language and identity are unlikely to be your concern – unless your establishment is Welsh and wants to change names or logos based on this.
In addition, if you are based in or near a national park, the fact that they are highlighting their green credentials means it is essential that you can do so too, as this can help boost custom from eco-conscious tourists. Ensuring your packaging is recyclable and will not damage a protected environment is a great start.
