Responsibility · Disclosure · Component
Claim substantiation file
Every public environmental or social claim, in its exact wording, with the evidence that supports it and who approved its use.
The deliverable
What it is
Greenwashing is usually not deliberate deception. It is a claim that grew in the retelling — a product change becoming “sustainable”, a partial offset becoming “climate neutral”. The substantiation file stops that growth by tying each wording to its evidence.
It covers claims wherever they appear: in the sustainability statement, on packaging, in advertising, on the website. The Brand Core carries these claims to the audience; this file is where they originate and are checked.
One level in
What it is made of
Each element is a constituent part of the component. Follow one to see the attributes it carries.
Claim wording
The claim exactly as it will appear, with the channels where it is used and the product or activity it refers to.
3 attributes: Claim · Subject · Channels
LearnSupporting evidence
The data, certification or study that supports the claim, with its date and the conditions under which it holds.
3 attributes: Evidence · Valid until · Limitations
LearnApproval
Who approved the claim for use, when, and the date on which it is next reviewed or withdrawn.
3 attributes: Approved by · Next review · Status
Learn
Look for claims in use that have no entry here. Each one is a statement the organisation cannot currently support.
The other components in disclosure
Sustainability statement
The periodic public account of material topics, targets and progress, built on a named reporting framework and consistent with the financial accounts.
LearnAssurance record
What an independent assurer examined in the sustainability statement, at which level, what they found and how the organisation responded.
Learn