Apple is no longer allowed to advertise the Apple Watch as a carbon neutral product in Germany, reports Reuters. A regional court in Frankfurt, Germany decided that Apple is violating competition law with the claim.
Environmentalists with Deutsche Umwelthilfe complained that Apple was misleading consumers by stating that the Apple Watch was a carbon neutral product, and the court ultimately agreed. The environmental group hailed the ruling as a win against "greenwashing."
Back in 2023, Apple said that the Apple Watch was one of its first carbon neutral devices, furthering its goal to make every product carbon neutral by the end of 2030.
Apple uses clean energy to manufacture the Apple Watch, and to reduce carbon emissions for Apple Watch manufacturing, it also uses 30 percent renewable material by weight and ships 50 percent of the devices without air transportation. Apple claims that this results in a 75 percent reduction in product emissions, with the company using "high-quality carbon credits" to address the remaining emissions.
Germany takes issue with the carbon credits that Apple is claiming are valid for neutralizing Apple Watch carbon emissions. Apple has established environmental projects under its Restore Fund, supporting forest restoration projects in Paraguay and Brazil.
Apple outlined the project back in 2024. It is working with Forestal Apepu to develop fast-growing eucalyptus forests for timber production on deforested lands, while also protecting remaining natural forest areas. Ecologists believe that monocultures like the one Apple is supporting harm biodiversity and require too much water.
Apple leases the land for its forest projects, and because many of the leases expire in 2029, the German court said that the future of the forest project was not secure.
An Apple spokesperson told Reuters that it plans to stop using the carbon neutral labeling for Apple Watches to comply with upcoming EU legislation.
