Can I call my packaging 'eco-friendly' or 'sustainable' on my product page without getting into trouble?
The short answer
Not casually, ASCI's Green Guidelines (effective February 2024) require any absolute claim like 'eco-friendly', 'sustainable', or 'planet-friendly' to be backed by robust, verifiable data or a credible certification, and you can't use a recycling symbol or green visual cue that implies an environmental benefit you haven't actually substantiated. ASCI has already fined Indian brands over claims like '100% natural' and 'chemical-free' that didn't hold up, so treat every green line on your PDP and packaging as something you'd need to defend with documentation, not just something that sounds nice. If you're not there yet, say what's specifically true, 'FSC-certified outer box', instead of a blanket 'eco-friendly'.
A quick summary to orient you. The real value is below: the resources worth your time, from people who've actually done it, not us.
Here are the resources
Hand-picked from around the web, each with a note on why it earns your time. India-specific ones carry a badge.
3 resources3 India-specific2 link-checked
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📄 Article
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Why we picked it
The primary source, straight from ASCI, read this before any secondary summary so you know exactly what 'substantiate with robust data' means in the regulator's own words.
Why we picked it
Good for the real enforcement examples, naming actual Indian brands fined for 'natural'/'chemical-free' claims that didn't hold up, which makes the risk concrete rather than theoretical.
Why we picked it
A law-firm-written summary that lays out both ASCI's self-regulatory Green Guidelines and the parallel CCPA draft rules, useful because green claims in India are being policed on two fronts at once, not just one.
