Dutch watchdog rules KLM’s ‘carbon zero’ ad is misleading

Bloomberg

The Dutch advertising watchdog ruled that a KLM promotion telling customers they could fly carbon-emission free is misleading. The ad’s tag line, “Be a hero, fly CO2 zero,” is an absolute claim, the Dutch Advertising Code Committee said in a verdict seen by Bloomberg. As such, the company has the burden of proving the statement and didn’t meet that test, the committee said.
A spokesman for the airline, the Dutch arm of Air France-KLM, declined to comment.
While the ruling is limited to only one carrier, it touches on broader pressure on airlines to lower their carbon footprint and ‘flight-shaming’ campaigns to get people to stopping flying. Commercially viable alternatives like electric and hydrogen powered jetliners are at least a decade away so carriers are relying on measures like carbon offsetting to reduce impact.
Airlines are now buying carbon offsets, or offering customers the option pay extra for them, to convince travelers that, on a net basis, their trips won’t contribute to global warming. These programs, which include tree planting and forest protection,
have been criticised as
insufficient, misleading or impossible to validate. A similar debate swirls around so-called sustainable aviation fuel, an element in airlines’ CO2-reduction plans.
KLM buys Golden Standard certified carbon credits for a reforestation project in Panama, and offers customers options to fly CO2 neutral at added cost.