In a landmark finding, the Federal Court of Australia has found that Kimberly-Clark did not mislead consumers by claiming that its Kleenex Cottonelle Flushable Cleansing Cloths are flushable.
Justice Gleeson’s ruling clearly states “the ‘flushability’ representation was not false, misleading or deceptive or likely to mislead or deceive."
The company has responded to this ruling by saying that K-C takes the truthfulness and accuracy of its product claims seriously and is delighted to see this reflected in today’s decision.
“At Kimberly-Clark we have always been committed to ensuring that our flushable wipes products meet or exceed international guidelines for flushability. We know that our flushable wipes are suitable to be flushed and this has now been confirmed by the Federal Court of Australia,” Doug Cunningham, Managing Director, Kimberly-Clark Australia and New Zealand says. "Kleenex flushable wipes meet or exceed the requirements set out in the INDA/EDANA flushability guidelines, which are the only widely accepted international guidelines for assessing flushability. The Federal Court concluded that the guidelines represent a “conscientious and scientific effort to establish an appropriate framework for assessing flushability”.
Kimberly-Clark is committed to continuing to educate consumers on what can and cannot be flushed. The majority of Kimberly-Clark’s non-flushable consumer products include clear instructions on how to dispose of each product responsibly, including a prominent ‘DO NOT FLUSH’ logo on packaging.
“We are looking forward to continuing to work with industry, government and wastewater authorities to advance these efforts” Mr Cunningham says.
