Britannia greenwashing row: Is storytelling in Indian advertising catering to ESG goals?

In an ecosystem where purpose-led work dominates award circuits, a new controversy is forcing advertising to confront its ESG blind spots. Britannia’s Cannes Lions-winning sustainability campaign ‘Nature Shapes Britannia’, lauded for its creative billboard design that worked around existing trees, recently came under fire after a detailed critique by two-time Cannes juror and strategist Polina Zabrodskaya, who called the campaign a case of “performative climate action.”

In a viral substack post titled “I Fact-Checked This Cannes-Winning Sustainability Campaign. It's Bullshit”, Zabrodskaya challenged the environmental claims made in the campaign’s case film, calling attention to inconsistencies in Britannia’s own sustainability disclosures. She highlighted sharp increases in the company’s water usage, plastic waste, and carbon emissions, raising larger questions about the disconnect between brand messaging and business reality.

“The optics can’t outweigh the outcome,” Zabrodskaya wrote, adding that “ad awards entries will one day be taught in universities under the subject: ‘Vanity Metrics - When Climate Action Became Performance Art’.”

Responding to the backlash, Britannia and its agency partner Talented issued a joint statement acknowledging that the company was “at the nascent stage” of its sustainability journey. The statement clarified that the increase in environmental metrics was due to expanded reporting boundaries and the addition of new manufacturing facilities in FY23-24.

“When compared like-to-like with FY22-23 operations alone, the data on water intensity, plastic and emissions remains consistent,” the statement said. “Sustainability is not a destination but a journey, and we are dedicated to making meaningful strides along the way.”

However, industry experts believe the controversy points to a larger pattern in advertising, where purpose-driven campaigns are increasingly being shaped more by storytelling than by strategy.

Over the past decade, sustainability and social purpose have become dominant themes in award submissions globally. While this shift has opened up space for more responsible communication, experts warn that without strong validation, it can also lead to superficial campaigns designed more to win trophies than drive impact.

Sumanto Chattopadhyay, a seasoned advertising veteran who has led top agencies like WPP's 82point5 Communications and Ogilvy, explains why purpose-driven messaging needs to be rooted in truth and not just storytelling.

"With purpose-driven campaigns, brands can’t just rely on poetic claims or clever messaging, they need to back it up with real action on the ground. Unlike comic or exaggerated ads where the consumer expects dramatization, purpose-led work like sustainability or women empowerment requires factual integrity. If the brand’s actual practices don’t align, audiences will call it out, as they did in the Britannia campaign. You can’t say ‘ Nature Shapes Britannia’ on a hoarding while your own annual report shows rising plastic wastage. In the race to win awards, you can’t cross the line between creative storytelling and manufacturing facts," he said.

“Sustainability cannot be treated as a communications layer, it must be a core business strategy,” said Sanjay Tripathy, Co-founder and CEO of BRISKPE. “When storytelling outpaces operational reality, it erodes consumer trust. The Britannia episode is not an isolated example, it’s part of a wider industry trend.”

Taking a firm view on the ethics of greenwashing, Sanjay Trehan, digital and new media advisor, said: “Sustainability should be at the heart of any responsible business,” he said. “Playing with it in a smart-alecky manner detracts from the brand promise. You may win an award, but such triumphs are pyrrhic.”

The right way to avoid accusations of greenwashing, marketers and agencies must build checks and balances into the creative process. This includes independent review of ESG claims, verifiable data disclosures, and tighter collaboration between creative, product, and sustainability teams, experts noted.

“Sustainability claims must be based on sustained action, credible data, and measurable impact,” said Trehan. “Otherwise, they are hogwash.”

Tripathy agrees: “The narrative should emerge from what the company is doing, not what it wants to be seen doing. Third-party validation and independent review processes must become the norm.”

Sandeep Goyal, Chairman, Rediffusion, opined: We have been doing some really impactful work on sustainability for Tata Power. We are into the second season of Sustainable is Attainable on CNBC TV 18. It is a comprehensive campaign on the various dimensions and perspectives of Go Green - solar roof, E-charging, electricity audits, cooling-as-a-service and more. Now we are doing a ground-level school activity covering 1,000 schools in UP focused on sustainability as part of Eco-Drive, another Tata Power initiative. Sustainability has to be a way of life for a corporate - 24x7x365. It has to become not a ritual but your religion."

The row has also reignited debate over how advertising awards like Cannes Lions evaluate campaigns with environmental claims. As more campaigns with ESG themes dominate award circuits, many believe the system itself needs recalibration.

“There must be a higher bar for campaigns that make environmental claims,” said Tripathy. “ESG audits or verified data should be mandatory, not an afterthought. Otherwise, we’re just rewarding the best storytelling, regardless of whether it’s grounded in truth or not.”

Trehan added, “The award can’t be judged in isolation. What impact did it create? Is the data credible? Was there third-party validation? All these aspects need to be looked into.

Experts say the onus is now on brands, agencies, and the awards ecosystem to rethink how ESG stories are framed and evaluated.

“Creativity is a powerful tool, but only when backed by brand values and demonstrable change,” said Trehan. “It must come from a genuine desire to make a difference, not a copywriter’s illusion or delusion.”

Tripathy believes the most effective campaigns going forward will be from cross-functional collaborative efforts between creative leads, ESG officers, and operations. “We need systems thinkers at the table, not just storytellers.”

As scrutiny around sustainability claims tightens, both online and in the boardroom, brands will need to treat ESG less like a storyline and more like a shared responsibility. The stakes are higher now, and the audience is paying attention.