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Demand for independent consumer advice has risen enormously
in India, especially after some spectacular results
in the past years. Currently 500 - 1000 smaller or bigger
institutions have been formed. Still, the impact on
public and producing industries is only low.The aim
of the project is to amend and strengthen consumer advice
regarding environmental issues, resource usage and quality
of goods. Through increased awareness in public and
changes in consumer demand, it is intended to raise
the quality of consumer goods, especially regarding
the environmental compatibility and environmentally
friendly production. A prerequisite for increasing the
demand for environmentally friendly products is the
building of awareness for these products within the
public. The ASEM project aims to increase this awareness
though strengthened capabilities of the consumer advisory
activities. Through increased capacities of CERC and
other consumer advice institutions, the institutions
will be able to include environmental criteria in their
research and test products accordingly and hence will
create more public attention on environmentally friendly
products. Furthermore it is intended to promote the
usage of the eco label "Ecomark" which so
far has never been awarded.It is intended that through
higher awareness and higher demand for environmentally
friendly products, the market for these products will
increase and thus the negative effects of less environmentally
friendly products on human beings and on the environment
will be reduced.ASEM supports therefore capacity building
in the filed of environmental testing of products at
CERC as well as the establishment of national and international
networks of consumer advisory institutions.
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