Green products are in. Now. Cool. New research shows that consumers are interested in environmentally-sensitive goods. And so, green marketing is hot. The task now is to protect ourselves from over-eager marketers (or even ill-willed cynics) that over promise or mis-position their goods and services in the name of green – yeah, the money kind of green.

So today began the ANSI (American National Standards Institute) “Workshop Toward Product Standards for Sustainability,” a conference focused on standards for environmental claims and performance. to focus on issues related to sustainability and environmental performance standards for products. With the help of the Environmental Protection Agency, ANSI is welcoming all kinds of stakeholders to discuss the development and use of standards around product environmental sustainability claims.

This is an exciting, yet messy, emerging space.

To date, some green standards have been set in individual product categories  and industries, often by competing non-profits and industry-created entities. While the dust is somewhat settled around “organic” and “fair trade,”  highly-respected standards such as Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification for forest products are still fighting for market share and universal acceptance. The result is consumer confusion and certainly reduced adoption among shoppers.

Hopefully the U.S. can learn some lessons from such efforts as Nordic Swan Ecolabel, a voluntary licensing system in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland that has certified some 3,000 products since 1991. In 1998, a survey showed that more than 80 % of Norwegian customers prefer products with the Swan label.

With stats like that, product manufacturers will pay to play in the green arena. Now we just need the system. Hey, good luck, ANSI!