The increasing concern about business impacts on the environment and society has resulted in growing attention toward sustainable production and consumption models. Currently a wide range of tools providing significant benchmarks for sustainability product performance as well as guidance for consumers is available. Energy labels are informative labels applied to manufactured products indicating data relative to energy performance, generally in terms of consumption, efficiency, cost, and so on. Consumers thus are provided with the necessary information for making more-informed choices. Currently, three categories of energy labels are used in most countries: endorsement, comparative, and information only. Endorsement labels essentially offer a “seal of approval” that a product meets certain prespecified criteria. They are generally based on a “yes/no” procedure and offer little additional information. One example of an endorsement label for energy efficiency is the Energy Star label that is provided by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Comparative labels are divided into two subcategories: one involves a categorical ranking system, and the other uses a continuous scale or bar graph to show relative energy use. The category labels use a ranking system that tells consumers how energy efficient a model is compared to others. The main emphasis is on establishing clear categories so that the consumer can easily understand, by looking at a single label, how an energy-efficient product compares relative to others in the market. The European energy label is an example of a category label. The other category of comparative label—continuous scale labels—provide comparative information that enables consumers to make informed choices about products; however, they do not concern specific categories. The Canadian energy guide is an example of the continuous-scale label. Information-only labels provide data on the technical performance of the labeled product and offer no simple way (such as a ranking system) to compare energy performance between products. These types of labels are generally not consumer friendly because they contain only technical information. It is important to keep a consistent label style and format across product types; this makes it easier for consumers to understand individual types of labels to evaluate different products. Selecting a label to use is not always easy and usually depends on local consumer knowledge and attitudes. The endorsement label is quite effective, at least with consumers that are attentive to environmental issues. Categorical comparison labels provide more information about energy use and, if well designed and implemented, can provide a consistent basis that buyers can focus on when evaluating energy efficiency from one purchase to another. Continuous scale labels can transmit more detailed information on relative energy use, but research has shown that this label format may be difficult for consumers to understand. Information-only labels are generally more effective for the most educated and economically and/or environmentally concerned consumers.

“L’evoluzione dell’Energy labelling: analisi delle dinamiche a livello internazionale”

MALANDRINO, Ornella;
2005-01-01

Abstract

The increasing concern about business impacts on the environment and society has resulted in growing attention toward sustainable production and consumption models. Currently a wide range of tools providing significant benchmarks for sustainability product performance as well as guidance for consumers is available. Energy labels are informative labels applied to manufactured products indicating data relative to energy performance, generally in terms of consumption, efficiency, cost, and so on. Consumers thus are provided with the necessary information for making more-informed choices. Currently, three categories of energy labels are used in most countries: endorsement, comparative, and information only. Endorsement labels essentially offer a “seal of approval” that a product meets certain prespecified criteria. They are generally based on a “yes/no” procedure and offer little additional information. One example of an endorsement label for energy efficiency is the Energy Star label that is provided by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Comparative labels are divided into two subcategories: one involves a categorical ranking system, and the other uses a continuous scale or bar graph to show relative energy use. The category labels use a ranking system that tells consumers how energy efficient a model is compared to others. The main emphasis is on establishing clear categories so that the consumer can easily understand, by looking at a single label, how an energy-efficient product compares relative to others in the market. The European energy label is an example of a category label. The other category of comparative label—continuous scale labels—provide comparative information that enables consumers to make informed choices about products; however, they do not concern specific categories. The Canadian energy guide is an example of the continuous-scale label. Information-only labels provide data on the technical performance of the labeled product and offer no simple way (such as a ranking system) to compare energy performance between products. These types of labels are generally not consumer friendly because they contain only technical information. It is important to keep a consistent label style and format across product types; this makes it easier for consumers to understand individual types of labels to evaluate different products. Selecting a label to use is not always easy and usually depends on local consumer knowledge and attitudes. The endorsement label is quite effective, at least with consumers that are attentive to environmental issues. Categorical comparison labels provide more information about energy use and, if well designed and implemented, can provide a consistent basis that buyers can focus on when evaluating energy efficiency from one purchase to another. Continuous scale labels can transmit more detailed information on relative energy use, but research has shown that this label format may be difficult for consumers to understand. Information-only labels are generally more effective for the most educated and economically and/or environmentally concerned consumers.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11386/1128978
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