Jason Hwang

MGMT 320
Case 6: Fiji Water
Do you think Fiji Water is engaged in greenwashing? Why or
why not?
I believe that Fiji Water is engaged in greenwashing, due to the
companys false and misleading claims of being Carbon Negative. By
definition, greenwashing is disinformation disseminated by an
organization by presenting themselves as environmentally responsible,
which is exactly what Fiji Water is trying to do. Despite all their
numerous environmental initiatives, such as waste and water
management, tree planting, recycling, etc., Fiji Waters ingenuity
creates an even more negative image, the exact opposite of what they
were trying to achieve. By employing a discredited carbon accounting
method known as forward crediting, Fiji Water does not remove more
carbon pollution that they create, rather, they take credit for future
carbon removal projects that may or not take place. Those who
purchase Fiji Water are well aware of its environmental impact efforts,
as not many reasonable individuals would purchase bottled water at a
premium without proper knowledge; for these environmentally
conscious individuals, purchasing this water means cutting back on
global carbon emissions within a reasonable amount of time, however,
due to forward crediting, this may happen within decades.

How should FIJI address the challenges it is facing from

California and the Fijuan Government?
If Fiji Water were perceived as genuinely trying to help
communities and the global environment, then they would have more
luck with the Fijian government and the consumers who purchase their
water. Consumers purchase Fiji Water understanding that they actively
attempt to be an industry leader; they should take Corporate Social
Responsibility by creating wealth not only to their company, but also
by protecting, avoiding harm to, and enhancing societal assets, these
assets being the global environment and Fiji itself. Fiji Water depends
on the aquifer in Fiji, so why not create shared value by this? Fiji has
been known to have frequent typhoid outbreaks and parasitic
infections due to inadequate access to clean and safe drinking water;
this should not be the case with Fiji Water being there. Fiji Water has a
responsibility to help the community in which they are in, and by giving
back, they can establish a better and more genuine relationship that
allows both the business and community grow. The president of Fiji
even issued a public statement declaring that Fiji Water had adopted
tactics that prove the company does not care about Fiji or Fijians. Fiji
Water must change that perceived notion by taking into account all the
stakeholders in the business, and not just the consumers. The
government of Fiji, the local residents, and consumers are all
stakeholders. By being involved in strategic CSR, they can establish a

better brand that is genuine, while also sustaining their business. In

regards to the consumers who purchase Fiji Water at a higher price
than its competitors, the company should partake in actual carbon
negative activities, where the current operations remove more carbon
from the atmosphere than they release into it.