ACCC issues carbon price claims guide for Australian businesses
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has launched a guide for Australian businesses on attributing price increases or impacts to the carbon price cost.
Discussing the ACCC’s role in policing claims attributing price rises to the carbon pricing mechanism, ACCC chairman Rod Sims said today that the new guide aims to assist businesses in understanding their rights and obligations.
He said, “Business costs increase all the time, and businesses are free to set their own prices. However, if a business chooses to raise their prices they should not misrepresent this as a result of the carbon price when it is not the case. The message is simple: if you are going to make a claim, you need to make sure it is right.”
In a media statement released today, the ACCC said its ‘Carbon Price Claims’ guide for business is intended to provide assistance to businesses preparing for the implementation of the Carbon Pricing Mechanism. Mr Sims said the ACCC will continue its program of engagement with the business community and with the development of further guidance for consumers and industry.
Australian law firm FoodLegal, which specialises in the food industry and fast moving consumer goods, is running half-day intensive workshops ‘Going Green: Eco-claims for Fast Moving Consumer Goods’ in both Sydney (Monday morning 13 February 2012) and in Melbourne (Monday morning 20 February 2012). The training will cover regulatory criteria for making environmental-related claims for products and services, product stewardship regulatory impacts, carbon pricing mechanism implementation, carbon credits claims, ACCC guidelines, case law legal principles, and other relevant regulatory issues for marketers and product developers about environmental credentials for their products.
