FTC Releases Agenda for May 23 Workshop on “Recyclable” Claims

The Federal Trade Commission released the tentative agenda for its May 23 workshop in Washington, DC, which will examine the Commission’s guidance on “recyclable” advertising claims as part of its ongoing review of the Guides for Use of Environmental Marketing Claims (Green Guides). The workshop, Talking Trash: Recyclable Claims and the Green Guides, is free and open to the public, and pre-registration is not required.

In-person registration will begin at 7:45 am, followed by a welcome and opening remarks by James Kohm, Associate Director of the Enforcement Division within the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.

The half-day event will feature three panel discussions featuring a range of stakeholders. The panel discussions will focus on:

• The Current State of the Recycling Market and Claims: This session will include discussion of current conditions in the consumer recycling space, operation of recycling programs, markets for recyclable products, and advertising claims.

• Consumer Perception of Recycling Claims: This session will explore available evidence of how consumers understand “Recyclable” advertising claims.

• The Future of the Green Guides: This session will build on the previous sessions to analyze whether changes or updates are needed to ensure the Green Guides continue to provide accurate guidance to marketers on how to avoid making deceptive “Recyclable” claims.

The event will be webcast on the FTC’s website, www.ftc.gov. Registration is not required to watch the webcast. In conjunction with this event, the Commission is seeking additional public comment. The public will have until June 13, 2023 to submit comments to accommodate those who wish to provide input on the topics discussed at the event. Information on how to submit comments can be found on Regulations.gov.