“The Blue Angel ecolabel is one of the most innovative emblems of sustainable development“, said Federal Minister for Environment Peter Altmaier. „The continuously updated award criteria continue to set new standards for environmentally friendly goods and services. Bearers of the Blue Angel ecolabel are proven pioneers of sustainability with their progressive products and also demonstrate that they are assuming social responsibility.“
Volker Teichert, Chairman of the Environmental Label Jury, pointed out: “The Blue Angel makes the idea of sustainable management tangible for businesses and their customers. It sets real benchmarks for companies and gives customers a reliable point of orientation when making purchases. Active communication about the ecolabel, for which we are awarding the prize this year, is very important.“ President Jochen Flasbarth of the Federal Environment Agency added, “Products and production processes have a considerable impact on the environment. The Blue Angel gives consumers easy guidance about which products are especially compatible with the environment during their entire life cycle. I wish for more businesses to label their products in this way.“
This year’s nominees include the Heller-Leder GmbH company, the first leather tannery to meet the strict requirements for award of the Blue Angel. The company in the town of Hehlen in the south of Lower Saxony is one of the biggest tanneries in Germany. It supports the ecolabel and its use throughout the entire chain, from production to sales. The Blue Angel is the key to the company’s public image and is used on world markets that include China. Another nominee is the company Unify GmbH & Co. KG, a manufacturer of telecommunications equipment and service provider. It sells certified products worldwide to businesses and customers in the public sector. The company’s public relations material also features the Blue Angel prominently on such visible platforms as the CeBIT. A third nomination goes to Telekom Deutschland, which has had the ecolabel on digital cordless telephones since March this year, putting it at the forefront of that market. The company’s extensive sales network makes it a vital multiplier for the Blue Angel. Blue Angel certification also positively changed its own staff’s awareness and increased their openness and consciousness of sustainability issues.
The Blue Angel Award will be awarded by the German Sustainability Award Foundation in collaboration with the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, the Federal Environment Agency, the Environmental Label Jury, and RAL gGmbH during events for the German Sustainability Award in Düsseldorf on 22 November 2013. The German Sustainability Award Jury will select a winner from the three nominees.
