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Sustainable products
Recommendation
The concretisation of the “sustainability” of a
specific product is determined to a large ex-
tent by the distributor or the promoter of the
product. As a result, it is not always clear to
the consumer which products are “really” sus-
tainable, all the more so because ‘sustainable’
and ‘ethical’ mean different things to different
people. Nuclear energy, tobacco or genetically
modified organisms are examples of so-called
controversial activities whose funding via a
sustainable product is a matter for discussion.
Some minimum norms must be met, there-
fore. The extensive funding of the weapon in-
dustry or of companies that blatantly violate
human rights is hard to justify with regard to
the social norms. It is of great importance to
the consumer to easily and clearly identify if
the interpretation given to the sustainability of
a product matches his personal vision in this
respect. Besides, he will have to be sure that
the product he has purchased also effectively,
directly or indirectly, supports sustainable
objectives.
In that framework, Febelfin has drawn up a
recommendation for its members. For all in-
formation about this, go to
www.febelfin.be/nl/duurzame-producten
.
Sustainable investment
funds
Since 2001, BEAMA, the association for in-
vestment products, has been supervising the
quality of undertakings for collective invest-
ment (UCIs) that invest sustainably and in a
“
Febelfin’s recommendations and its
references to best practices are a perfect
basis for a quality standard, the force of
which may even become bigger thanks to
strict enforceability,independent control
and possibly a regulation in the long term.
An active social dialogue and agreements
about liability undoubtedly add to
the effectiveness and integrity of
sus­tai­nable investment.”
Herwig Peeters, Forum Ethibel, September 2012
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