Is Carbon Neutral the New Greenwashing?

Resource librarians have been encountering ever increasing claims of carbon neutrality; and it has become a marketing "halo". Most recently two interactions with manufacturers heavily involved in the manufacture of vinyl based products used carbon neutral manufacturing to suggest that there companies are focused on sustainability.  

While most already know this, it is worth mentioning that many groups achieve this "neutrality" by purchasing credits, and not by having an actual carbon neutral manufacturing process.  This doesn't mean that the efforts are not laudable.  Likewise, its also does not mean that their efforts are sustainable in the way they might be suggesting.

We recommend that you take claims of Carbon Neutrality with a grain of salt and remain focused on third-party certifications on specific products when evaluating sustainability characteristics.