"Listed on GreenFormat" - What Does That Actually Mean?

There were quite a few of these placards in booths on the expo hall floor at Greenbuild. They were nice-looking signs, and seemed to give some green cred. But... no. As it says on GreenFormat's website, " GreenFormat is open to any manufacturer that wants to list a product."

Now, I don't want to dis GreenFormat — BuildingGreen is actually working with CSI on this project, which is sort of an offshoot of their MasterFormat system — but being listed doesn't actually mean anything. Product manufacturers pay a fee to be listed; they input their own data; and GreenFormat takes no responsibility for the relative greenness of anything listed. Their FAQ answers the question "What about greenwashing?" like this:

GreenFormat does not seek to determine whether a product is green. Instead, using a comprehensive questionnaire, GreenFormat reports on the properties of a product, referencing specific industry standards wherever possible, and allowing space at the end of each category for individual manufacturer input.

This system is designed to allow users to compare product data and make their own judgments — and the potential for it to be exceptionally valuable is high if there's enough buy-in from manufacturers. We're excited about GreenFormat and are pleased to be assisting in its ongoing development. The day when it's de rigeur for any building products being introduced to the market to be added to this database is going to be a mighty fine day.

The placards at Greenbuild were really publicity for GreenFormat, to help achieve its purpose... but were easily misconstrued as some kind of endorsement — which unfortunately means that those signs were helping to create the very mess that the program is intended to help clarify. That said, this well-intended misstep doesn't diminish GreenFormat's ultimate goal. Check it out if you haven't already.