Environmental Labeling, Certification and Procurement Schemes in Canada, Mexico and the United States

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Among the highlights of this report: There are at least 25 important environmental labeling schemes in place in the United States. These schemes cover 156 product categories and approximately 310 actual products. While diversity of choice—especially in public policy instruments—is welcome, the current state of environmental labels may contribute to a bewildering array of choices for consumers, and the inability of one or two labels to carve a dominant market niche. (Given the trend in US markets toward the predominance of labels within different product categories, this fragmentation may contribute to the somewhat disappointing results of labels in the United States). This diversity of schemes also makes it difficult to determine an overall or aggregated estimate of total expenditures on green labels in the United States at this time.(...)