ABSTRACT
The environmental characteristics of products have become increasingly important to consumers [40, 52]. Firms have responded by placing eco-labels on products that highlight the item’s environmental attributes and by introducing new, or redesigned, “green” products [50]. Governments and nongovernmental organizations have also responded by organizing, implementing, and verifying eco-labeling programs that cover thousands of products in more than 20 countries [51], while international efforts to standardize environmental labeling schemes have also emerged [12, 22], From a policy perspective, one aim of eco-labels is to educate consumers about the environmental impacts of the product’s manufacture, use, and disposal, thereby leading to a change in purchasing behavior and ultimately, to a reduction in negative impacts. Further, eco-labeling policies may promote environmental objectives without production site command and control methods and are
seen as a way of meeting global environmental objectives while complying with international trade agreements.3
