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Not so fast: German court says Apple can’t call Watch carbon neutral

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Not so fast: German court says Apple can’t call Watch carbon neutral Tim De Chant AM PDT · August 26, 2025 Two years ago, Apple announced its Watch Series 9 as its first carbon-neutral product. From cradle to grave, the company said the manufacturing, use, and disposal of the then-new model didn’t contribute to global warming.

Now, a German court says that Apple has to recant the claim.

Each aluminum Apple Watch Series 9 and Series 10 — two models with the carbon-neutral designation — generates just over 8 kilograms of carbon emissions. Apple then offsets those emissions through the purchase of carbon credits.

The German environmental group Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) brought the lawsuit against Apple.

“The Court has broadly upheld our rigorous approach to carbon neutrality,” an Apple spokesperson told TechCrunch via email. We remain laser focused on further reducing emissions

A panel of German judges zeroed in on the nature of Apple’s carbon credits, which stem from the planting of eucalyptus trees in Paraguay. Three-quarters of the project area falls on leased land, and the leases end in 2029.

The court said the short timeline undermined the company’s carbon-neutral claims and runs afoul of German competition law. Consumers might reasonably expect that forests used in carbon offset projects today would remain standing in 2050 and beyond since the Paris Agreement calls for a cessation of carbon emissions in the latter half of the century.

“Consumers would therefore assume that CO2 compensation is secured for the advertised Apple Watch until about 2050,” the court chairwoman said.

Without longer-term leases, it’s possible that the plantations would be cut down, undermining the carbon neutrality of any credits sold against them.

Update: Added statement from Apple.

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Tim De Chant Senior

Tim De Chant is a senior climate

De Chant is also a lecturer in MIT’s Graduate Program in Science Writing, and he was awarded a Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT in 2018, during which time he studied climate technologies and explored new business models for journalism. He received his PhD in environmental science, policy, and management from the University of California, Berkeley, and his BA degree in environmental studies, English, and biology from St. Olaf College.

You can contact or verify outreach from Tim

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