Eneco has agreed to discontinue the use of the slogan 'Faster towards climate neutral' in its advertisements following discussions with the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM). The ACM expressed concerns that the general claim could mislead consumers about the specific sustainability benefits of Eneco's products and noted that the claim did not clearly indicate it was an ambition for the year 2035.

ACM's Consumer Department Director emphasized the importance of companies providing clear and concrete sustainability ambitions to enable informed consumer choices. Vague terms like 'climate-neutral' can hinder comparisons between companies. Eneco's decision to stop using the misleading claim was welcomed by ACM, which hopes other companies will follow suit.

ACM's Guidelines on Sustainability Claims provide companies with guidance on communicating sustainability. Key principles include using clear, specific, and substantiated claims, making fair comparisons, and ensuring future sustainability ambitions are described concretely. Visual claims and labels should be helpful and not confusing.

While Eneco has a substantiated plan for carbon-reduction ambitions, the use of vague claims can still mislead consumers about the company's actual sustainability efforts. Eneco will cease using the misleading claim but will continue to communicate its ambitions internally. ACM aims to ensure markets function well by overseeing companies' sustainability claims to enable consumers to make informed choices.