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Characterization of the Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Products Program in the Context of Eco-labels and Environmental Declarations

Author

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  • Nikolay Minkov

    (Department of Environmental Technology, Technische Universität Berlin, 10623 Berlin, Germany)

  • Vanessa Bach

    (Department of Environmental Technology, Technische Universität Berlin, 10623 Berlin, Germany)

  • Matthias Finkbeiner

    (Department of Environmental Technology, Technische Universität Berlin, 10623 Berlin, Germany)

Abstract

(1) Background: The Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Products Program (C2C Certified for short) is a scheme for the certification of products that meet the criteria and principles of the Cradle to Cradle ® design approach. The objective of this paper is to characterize C2C Certified as an instrument for external communication in the context of environmental labeling and declarations. (2) Method: An eco-label characterization scheme consisting of 22 attributes was used to analyze C2C Certified. In addition, it was compared with the established standardization labeling typologies, namely Type I and Type III. This was further illustrated in an example within the building and construction sector. (3) Results: C2C Certified can be classified neither as a Type I, nor a Type III label. The main weaknesses of C2C Certified from a labeling perspective are: the generic, but not product-specific focus of the awarding criteria, the lack of a life cycle perspective, and the incompletely transparent stakeholder involvement procedure. Nevertheless, for certain attributes (e.g., the awarding format), C2C Certified provides practical solutions and goes beyond a Type I eco-label. Substantial similarities between Type III declarations and C2C Certified cannot be identified. (4) Conclusions: The main advantages and shortcomings of C2C Certified from a labeling perspective are pointed out. The approach shows similarities to a Type I eco-label, and efforts toward conformance with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) labelling standards would result in improving its comparability, recognition, and robustness.

Suggested Citation

  • Nikolay Minkov & Vanessa Bach & Matthias Finkbeiner, 2018. "Characterization of the Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Products Program in the Context of Eco-labels and Environmental Declarations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-20, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:3:p:738-:d:135210
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Brian E. Roe & Mario F. Teisl & Corin R. Deans, 2014. "The Economics of Voluntary Versus Mandatory Labels," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 407-427, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Mohajan, Haradhan, 2021. "Cradle to Cradle is a Sustainable Economic Policy for the Better Future," MPRA Paper 111334, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 10 Oct 2021.
    2. Ioannis E. Nikolaou & Nikoleta Jones & Alexandros Stefanakis, 2021. "Circular Economy and Sustainability: the Past, the Present and the Future Directions," Circular Economy and Sustainability,, Springer.
    3. Nathalie Gröfke & Valérie Duplat & Christopher Wickert & Brian Tjemkes, 2021. "A Multi-Stakeholder Perspective on Food Labelling for Environmental Sustainability: Attitudes, Perceived Barriers, and Solution Approaches towards the “Traffic Light Index”," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-23, January.
    4. Vanessa Bach & Nikolay Minkov & Matthias Finkbeiner, 2018. "Assessing the Ability of the Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Products Program to Reliably Determine the Environmental Performance of Products," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-19, May.
    5. Yao Song & Zhenzhen Qin & Zihao Qin, 2020. "Green Marketing to Gen Z Consumers in China: Examining the Mediating Factors of an Eco-Label–Informed Purchase," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(4), pages 21582440209, October.
    6. Yao Song & Zhenzhen Qin & Qi Yuan, 2019. "The Impact of Eco-Label on the Young Chinese Generation: The Mediation Role of Environmental Awareness and Product Attributes in Green Purchase," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-18, February.
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