A review of greenwashing and supply chain management: Challenges ahead

Abstract

As being environmentally responsible is a potential source of competitive advantage, incorporating genuine environmental practices across the supply chain may help firms capitalize on the growing demand for corporate accountability and consumer awareness. Therefore, it is important to understand to what extent firms are using greenwashing to mislead their stakeholders in the supply chain. The purpose of this paper is to review the existing literature regarding greenwashing in supply chain management (SCM) to shed light on the main thematic groups addressed in the literature, understand its challenges and develop a framework that highlights the key drivers that companies need to tackle to prevent greenwashing in supply chains. For this purpose, we have conducted a systematic literature review, following a three-stage method. It was possible to identify possible solutions to prevent greenwashing across four main dimensions of SCM: consumers/customers; relationships between focal firms and suppliers; certification programs and reporting assessment; and corporate leadership. We provide a framework to help firms develop their sustainable strategy and prevent greenwashing along the supply chain. This paper synthesizes the challenges that firms face when implementing a sustainable supply chain, suggests solutions to prevent greenwashing and provides future research avenues.

Keywords

• Greenwashing
• Supply chain
• Sustainability
• Sustainable supply chain management
• Systematic literature review