Welcome to ULS and Our

New Certification Program

Earth friendly. Recyclable. Environmentally safe. Biodegradable. Compostable. The list of marketing claims and superlatives seems to get bigger and more confusing daily.

To help consumers make more informed decisions about products and packages, we've created a Sustainable Products Certification Program that allows companies to feature the ULS logo on their packages if they can prove significant reductions in material and energy consumption, and their marketing claims meet FTC guidelines for environmental statements.

Need details? Learn more about program specifics and our initial participants.

You can also read about the program in the just-released April-May-June 2009 newsletter. It also includes Spring Cleaning Tips, an editorial on the importance of facts rather than faith, and a roundup of interesting product trends in sustainability.

The Latest Research (Click on report title)

Three LCI Studies on Tuna, Coffee, and Milk Containers (Read the press release.)

Summary of Life Cycle Impact (LCI) Assessment
of Coffee Packaging -- Our latest Packaging Efficiency Study highlighted the value of flexible vs. rigid containers. To be able to draw firmer conclusions, Franklin Associates developed a more complete, peer-reviewed LCI that includes end-of-life data relating to recycling and disposal. (Review the full study.)

Summary of Life Cycle Impact (LCI) Assessment
of Tuna Packaging -- This LCI research was performed on a variety of tuna containers. Results are eerily similar to those of the coffee study described above. (Review the full study.)

Addendum to Our Summary and Franklin Assoc. Study of Milk Containers-- Franklin also added a peer-review component to a previous study on milk containers, including revised data on reusable glass bottles. (Review the full study.)

See the rest of our studies.