Apple is removing the “carbon neutral” logo/symbol from its packaging, according to Fast Company.
The tech giant first introduced the mark two years ago with its first carbon neutral products—watches made with 75% fewer carbon emissions, with carbon offsets covering the rest. A carbon neutral Mac mini followed. Now, however, Apple is beginning to phase out the label, and boxes without it could start appearing later this year, according to Fast Company.
Why the change? A new European Union law is forcing the issue. By September 2026, companies will no longer be allowed to use claims like “carbon neutral” or “climate neutral” on packaging, ads, or product pages. Critics say such terms risk misleading consumers. Apple agrees that strong standards are important—but argues it is losing a way to highlight genuine progress in cutting emissions.
“There’s a real impact to not talking about it at a product level,” says Sarah Chandler, Apple’s vice president of environment and supply chain innovation, told Fast Company.
What’s more, in February Apple was sued by consumers who said its claim that three versions of Apple Watches are “carbon neutral” and environmentally friendly is false and misleading.
Reuters reported that in a complaint filed in San Jose, California federal court, seven purchasers of the green-tagged Apple Watch Series 9, SE and Ultra 2 said they would not have bought their watches or would have paid less had they known the truth.
Apple had this to say in September 2023 when it rolled out new Apple Watches: Each carbon neutral Apple Watch model meets the following strict criteria: 100 percent clean electricity for manufacturing and product use, 30 percent recycled or renewable material by weight, and 50 percent of shipping without the use of air transportation.4 These combined efforts result in at least a 75 percent reduction in product emissions for each model. The company will use high-quality carbon credits to address the small amount of remaining emissions, resulting in a carbon neutral product footprint. Every carbon neutral Apple Watch — which includes any aluminum Series 9 and SE models when paired with a new Sport Loop, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 when paired with a new Trail Loop or Alpine Loop — is certified by SCS Global Services, a leader in environmental standards and certification.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit –from California, Florida and Washington, D.C.–said two carbon offsetting projects on which Apple relied to meet its corporate emissions target did not provide “genuine” carbon reductions.
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