Apple still bottom of
the barrel
03 April 2007 - Amsterdam, Netherlands
— The latest Greenpeace ranking of electronic
manufacturers' recycling and toxic content
policies has a couple of surprises: a previously
low ranked Chinese company leaps to the
number one spot, and Apple stays in last
place.
We love to see electronic products manufacturers
competing for who can outgreen whom.
In one of the best outcomes of our quarterly
"Green Ranking" we've seen Michael
Dell challenge the entire industry to adopt
a worldwide takeback policy (something we
put on our wish list to Dell when the campaign
first started), watched some companies meet
and then exceed our demands, and enjoyed
getting phone calls from other manufacturers
asking when, precisely, new policies needed
to be adopted in order to be reflected in
the next ranking.
Sony-Ericsson not only took up our demand
to eliminate (take a deep breath and say
this fast) brominated fire retardants and
polyvinyl chloride -- they're eliminating
beryllium and phthalates too. And Chinese
manufacturer Lenovo has jumped from last
place to the middle of the pack to top dog
in six months: all they need to do for a
perfect 10 is to get a green product on
the market.
Competitive pressure, ongoing dialogue
with Greenpeace campaigners, and consumer
expectations have driven an improvement
in companies' scores since the December
2006 edition of the Guide, with nine out
of 14 companies now scoring more than five
points out of 10.
In our newest ranking, Chinese PC maker
Lenovo displaces Nokia from the lead position
it enjoyed since the Guide was launched.
Sony and LG Electronics receive penalty
points for operating double standards on
their e-waste takeback policies across the
world, while Apple, having made no progress
since the launch of the Guide in August
2006, continues to languish in last place,
far behind all other major manufacturers.
(Are you a surprised and disappointed Apple
user? We are too. All of us who love Apple
are giving them a push by writing to Steve
Jobs, giving our Macs a hug, and participating
in other ways in the Green my Apple campaign.)
"Given the growing mountains of e-waste
in China - both imported and domestically
generated – it is heartening to see a Chinese
company taking the lead, and assuming responsibility
at least for its own branded waste,"
said Iza Kruszewska, our International Toxics
Campaigner, "The challenge for the
industry now is to see who will actually
place greener products on the market."
Lenovo, which bought IBM's consumer electronics
division in 2005, scores top marks on its
e-waste policies and practice; the company
offers takeback and recycling in all the
countries where its products are sold. Lenovo
also reports the amount of e-waste it recycles
as a percentage of its sales. However, the
company has yet to put on the market products
that are free of the worst chemicals.
Other companies in the top five include
Nokia (2nd), Sony Ericsson (3rd) Dell (4th)
and Samsung (5th).
Sony Ericsson has moved back up the guide
(they were 5th in December 2006) and is
the first company to set a timeline of 1st
January 2008 for eliminating substances
in addition to those banned by the European
RoHS Directive (Restriction of Hazardous
Substances in electronic products), including
phthalates, beryllium and some uses of antimony
compounds.
Sony and LG Electronics have been penalised
for practicing double standards on their
regional and national policies for recycling
their own-branded products. While both companies
support Individual Producer Responsibility
elsewhere in the world, in the United States
they are part of a coalition opposing producer
responsibility laws and calling for consumers,
instead of producers, to pay for the recycling
of e-waste.
"We expect companies to have consistent
global policies and treat all their customers
equally. With this edition of the Guide,
we're seeing some companies move beyond
good statements of principle and towards
real action, with the roll-out of voluntary
take-back programs and detailed information
being provided to customers. But companies
have to stay on the ball and progress in
step with the market. Existing commitments
from companies begin to look less impressive
on this dynamic score card as their competitors
raise the bar!" concluded Kruszewska.
