Good Environmental Choice Australia

The Good Environmental Choice Label is the only environmental labelling program in Australia which indicates the environmental performance of a product from a whole of product life perspective for consumer goods. The label is awarded to products that meet voluntary environmental performance standards which have been created and assessed in conformance to international environmental labelling standards. The program is internationally recognised and growing in demand and awareness throughout different industries. On this website you will find information about certified products, environmental labelling in Australia, and the objectives of the program.

Good Environmental Choice Australia (GECA) Ltd administers this labelling system.

Manufacturers will also find information as to the requirements of the declaration and how they may apply for recognition with the Good Environmental Choice Label for Australia.

To see GECA’s Mission and Objectives, please click here

GECA’s Ecolabel program is internationally recognised through GECA’s membership of the Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN). GEN is a global not-for-profit association of national third-party, environmental performance labelling organisations. It was founded in 1994 to improve, promote and develop the ecolabelling of products and services. GEN members must meet certain requirements, which include conforming to the principles of ISO 14024. GECA is the only Australian ecolabel recognised by GEN.

Through our membership of GEN, we are able to assist Australian manufacturers and other suppliers in achieving international certification in GEN member countries – to use their ecolabels and access their markets as environmentally preferable products.

A key condition of GEN membership is that the ecolabelling organisation must affirm that it “conforms to the GEN conditions of membership set forth in the GEN By-Laws”. GECA shows compliance with ISO 14024 through its Standards and through its membership of GEN”

Many consumers would like to make their purchasing decision based on environmental factors as well. For example, if you know that two types of printing paper look, perform and are priced the same, but one comes from plantation timber and the other comes from tropical rainforests, you'd probably prefer the plantation paper.

This is just a simple example, but all sorts of products have different environmental impacts. The problem is, it's usually hard to tell. If you go shopping for paint, shampoo, a computer, furniture, magazines, dishwashing detergent, clothes and many other products, it can be very hard to make a decision with the environment in mind. The information just isn't there.

The good news is, things are getting easier. Look for the Good Environmental Choice Label.

Good Environmental Choice  Australia's Ecolabel Program, launched in November 2001, provides to the community an environmental mark of recognition for a wide range of products and services.  The benefits of an independent environmental label is that all Australians can easily recognise products which are sensitive to environmental pressures. The GECA certification scheme is built on a recognised international standard detailing how independent ecolabelling schemes should be administered:  ISO 14 021.  

The Australian Ecolabel Program has been developed for general compliance to ISO 14 024 and is managed by a not-for-profit organisation, utilising a national network of registered assessors. The  program awards a mark of recognition for products and services that meet standards of environmental, quality and social performance.

The voluntary Australian Environmental Labelling Standards developed by Good Environmental Choice Australia Ltd (GECA) are designed to give manufacturers, distributors, and marketers the financial benefits of dealing in and producing environmentally preferable products. The association develops scientifically recognised benchmarks for the environmental performance of products and services throughout the market. A product's or service's performance against these benchmarks  will determine whether it is awarded the Australian "Good Environmental Choice" ecolabel.

Australia spends more than $10.1 billion per annum  in increasing the environmental performance of the market. Commonwealth and State Governments have, over the past 10 years, enacted more than 100 pieces of legislation relevant to the environmental performance of industry and our community. The Environmental Protection Agencies are often on the ground giving clear directions to businesses and companies that they can't do what they have been doing for so long. Many companies have now initiated environmental policies in their operations and have given considerable time and money to ensuring their environmental performance is acceptable, not least from the threat to their directors which are liable for the environmental damages that their operations may cause. In carefully assessing all of these growing trends, GECA  has developed a range of services to help get business in line with the environmental expectations of the 21st Century.

In 1994, Australian Environmental Standards Pty Ltd was registered. Over the next three years the company engaged  a group of industrial engineers, lawyers, marketers, environmental scientists, and financial analysts to develop core intellectual property, and methodologies for assessing environmentally preferable products. The work on the  environmental labelling scheme progressed quickly. At the same time, more and more manufacturers adapted their products to be more environmentally responsible and many began looking for a label they could put on their packaging to reflect this shift.

In 2000, ecolabelling resources improved, know-how was refined, and the Australian Environmental Labelling Association Inc was registered. On the 1st November 2001, the organisation formally entered the market with the release of a consultation paper. Shortly afterwards the first draft standards were issued for consultation. In March, 2006, the Australian Environmental Labelling Association changed its registered name to Good Environmental Choice  Australia (GECA) Ltd. Currently, GECA functions as a Management Committee of day to day managers, an advisory committee of experts who provide guidance and advice, and a national network of assessors. The head office is located at the south wing of the Weston Community Hub.  

After consultation submissions were reviewed, the program was publicly launched in 2002 to service the Australian market with a credible and independent labelling scheme for a large number of consumer and industrial products.