Five words
Labels
Of the fifty-four listings in this catalog, fourteen use at least one of these five words and forty use none of them. Each page below says what the word means, who defines it, and which listings printed it.
| The word on the box | What it is | Who defines it | Listings using it | Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HE compatible | A description of the washing machine the product is sold for. | ENERGY STAR certifies the machines. Nobody certifies the phrase on the box. | 4 of 54 | HE Compatible |
| septic-safe | A seller claim that the product is suitable to enter an on-site septic system. | No agency defines it. EPA publishes owner guidance for the systems themselves. | 1 of 54 | Septic-Safe |
| non-toxic, free and clear | A cluster of reassurance phrases that name an absence rather than a content. | No agency defines these. FTC guidance governs how such claims may be phrased. | 8 of 54 | Non-Toxic and Free and Clear |
| eco-friendly, biodegradable | Environmental marketing claims of the kind the FTC Green Guides address. | FTC Green Guides govern how the claim may be made. No agency grants a mark. | 8 of 54 | Eco and Biodegradable |
| EWG Verified | A mark from the Environmental Working Group, a private non-profit organization. | The Environmental Working Group, a private non-profit. Not a federal standard. | 1 of 54 | EWG Verified |
Labels
Everything comforting on a box is printed in the same typeface as everything checkable on it.
Photo: Arina Krasnikova on Pexels
How to read this section
There are three different kinds of thing in the table above, and they look identical on a shelf. One names a machine standard that a federal program administers. One names a private organization that publishes its own criteria and grants a mark. The other three name nothing at all, and exist to reassure. Telling them apart is the only skill this section is trying to hand over.
None of these words is treated here as evidence of safety, and no product on this site is ranked against another on safety or on environmental grounds. What is recorded is which listing used which word.