Abstract
An ecolabel is a symbol that indicates that a food has been produced in a way that is considered environmentally preferable. More generally, the concept also covers animal welfare, social responsibility, localness, or "authenticity." The most credible ecolabels are based on explicit, publicly available, verifiable standards, with compliance verified by an accredited, third-party certifier. Because there are so many ecolabels in the market already, an effective ecolabel program should also educate consumers about what the label means, so that they will know how it differs from others that they otherwise might have perceived as equivalent.