SAUDI ARABIA’S Al-Jazeera Paints says it has become the first company outside the US to be awarded Green Seal’s EcoLabel certification for its range of green-friendly paints.

“Al-Jazeera Paints’ commitment to the environment has paid off with the company securing the EcoLabel for many of its flagship products,” says a company spokesman.
He continues: “This has been achieved as a result of rigorous research and an unwavering and focused approach by the whole team involved in this project under the leadership of Saud Al Rumaih, vice-president and co-founder of the company.”
The Green Seal EcoLabel certification is one of the most thorough and exhaustive processes where all evaluations are based on information using internationally-recognised state-of-the-art methods and procedures.
To earn the label, a product must meet stringent environmental standards for the category as demonstrated by rigorous evaluation, testing and plant visits. Green Seal is universally recognised by experts from all over the world as being one of the best in its field.
“Eco-labelling is a relatively new concept, and corporations and professionals such as architects, engineers, builders and contractors have begun to realise its importance,” says the spokesman. “Thus, it is a giant stride for a paint firm to show environmental and corporate responsibility.”
Al-Jazeera Paints president Muhammed Al Rumaih comments: “We are passionate in our pursuit of rewarding our customers’ faith and confidence in our products with the best inclusive quality. Our paints cover all the features that one looks for in a product such as functional quality, performance, user-friendliness and adherence to stringent global environmental regulations.”
Saud says Al-Jazeera’s eco-label comes at the right time, with some paint manufacturers misleading the market with “dubious claims about  the environmental benefits of their products”.
“Our decision to go for arguably the most difficult and challenging eco-certification was a deliberate attempt to differentiate and distinguish us from these companies,” he says.
 Saud continues: “Customers in the Gulf should be able to benefit from the same health and safety standards enjoyed by those in developed countries and to this end Al-Jazeera Paints meets the strictest VOC [volatile organic compound] regulations, while working towards  making them virtually free of VOCs.”
Al-Jazeera Paints general manager Abdullah Al-Rumaih says that though the paints manufacturer is well known for being innovative, this award lies very close to the company’s heart.
“Within our list of several achievements, the Green Seal EcoLabel is very special as this concerns our community’s health and safety,” he says.
Abdullah attributes Al-Jazeera Paint’s latest success to more than 25 years of experience which has helped the company position its products uniquely on the market and differentiate them “by technology and innovation”.
“We will continue to support the concept and construction of sustainable green buildings and we are ready to provide these projects with the right products in order to protect the environment and protect people’s health,” he concludes.