Amazon Adds Sustainability Certifications | Progressive Grocer

Amazon is adding new certifications from major health, organic, and animal welfare organizations to help shoppers seeking more sustainable products across grocery, household, beauty and other categories.

The four new certifications are:

• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Safer Choice label, which helps customers find products made with safer ingredients for the health of families, pets, workplaces and the environment. Safer Choice-certified products have been evaluated by EPA scientists, and every ingredient must meet strict safety criteria for both human health and the environment. Products made with safer ingredients can help boost indoor air quality and protect municipal waterways.
• EWG Verified, which means that the products reduce chemicals of concern and support companies committed to using safer ingredients. The mark is backed by the Environmental Working Group’s scientific expertise and years of research into chemical safety and the effects of exposure to toxic chemicals on human health.
• Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC), which is a certification for food, textiles and personal care ingredients. ROC farms and products meet high standards for soil health, animal welfare and social fairness. The program works to create long-term solutions to the climate crisis, factory farming and fractured rural economies.
• Animal Welfare Approved, which is a food label verifying that animals are raised on a pasture or range for their whole lives on more sustainable, independent farms, with no routine antibiotics or added hormones, no animal byproducts, and no confinement used.

The e-grocer’s Climate Pledge Friendly program aims to make it easy for customers to discover and shop for more sustainable products on its site. The company has not only teamed with third-party certifiers, it has also created its own certification, Compact by Design, which spotlights products that meet sustainability standards and help preserve the natural world. Climate Pledge Friendly continues to grow its offering of more sustainable products, with the program’s badge now appearing on 75,000-plus products in the United States and Europe.

“Customers want a way to make more sustainable and informed shopping choices, and Climate Pledge Friendly is ramping up its efforts to help customers know their purchases meet sustainability standards and are helping to preserve the natural world,” noted Adam Werbach, global lead for sustainable shopping at Amazon. “We are excited to add EWG Verified, EPA Safer Choice, Regenerative Organic Certification and Animal Welfare Approved to the Climate Pledge Friendly program’s trusted third-party certifications, which allow customers to discover and shop even more Climate Pledge Friendly brands and products.” 

Products eligible for Climate Pledge Friendly status are identified in shopping results, have further information about the certifications that make the product Climate Pledge Friendly, and are featured in a dedicated section. on Amazon. Climate Pledge Friendly brands include Burt’s Bees Baby, Seventh Generation and Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day. 

Seattle-based Amazon is No. 2 on Progressive Grocer’s 2021 PG 100 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.