You can only claim what your waste records prove. "We recycle" needs a collection record for each material and a named destination. "We divert X% from landfill" needs weighed loads, not bin counts. "Our waste is fully accounted for" needs a photo, a timestamp and a weight for every pickup, and a record of where each load went. The table below matches each claim to its record.
Match each claim to the record that proves it
Take each statement you want to publish and ask one question. What would I show if someone asked me to prove this?
| The claim you want to make | The record that backs it | The weak version to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| "We recycle our cardboard, plastic and metal" | A collection record for each material, and a named facility that received it | "We recycle", with no record of which materials or where they went |
| "We divert X% of our waste from landfill" | Weighed loads, with the division written out | A percentage worked out from bin counts or trips |
| "We're reducing what we send to landfill" | A baseline, then every month measured the same way | One figure with nothing to compare it against |
| "Our recyclables reach a real recycling facility" | A delivery record or acknowledgement from the facility that took them | A contractor's verbal assurance |
| "Our waste is collected and fully accounted for" | A photo, a timestamp and a weight for every pickup, and a record of where each load went | "It's all handled", with nothing to show for it |
A stronger claim is not a bolder word. It is a better document.
Real client records show which claims hold and which do not
Each line below comes from a record in GarGeon Connect, our online portal that logs every pickup's weight, time and photo.
- A diversion claim that holds. Signature Market, an e-commerce company, kept 68.598 of 93.09 tonnes out of landfill in 2025. That is 68.598 ÷ 93.09 = 73.69%.
- A rate with its sum shown. A retail mall client's quarterly report prints the division for June 2026: 1.31 t ÷ (40.02 t + 1.31 t) = 3.2%. The sum is published on our recycling rate page.
- A trend that rules a claim out. The same client's rate fell from 6.7% in April to 4.1% in May and 3.2% in June. Landfilled weight rose from 33.50 t to 40.02 t. On that record, "we're reducing what we send to landfill" would not hold for the quarter.
- A record for each material. That client's April recycling had carton and metal. May and June had carton only. On that record, "we recycle our metal" is backed for one month in three.
The mall's figures are published with the client's permission. Its report printed the fall and said what to check. Were cardboard and metal going into the general bins? Had a recent vendor change cut the recycling pickups?
That is what a record is for. It shows which claims you have earned, and which to hold back.
We keep these records as part of total waste management: one partner for collection, recycling and the record of every pickup.
Three claims each go wrong in a different way
"We recycle." Collected for recycling is not the same as recycled. Keep each material apart at source, and get the receiving facility named. Our guide to verifying your recycling contractor shows how to check a licence. Where Act 672, Malaysia's solid waste law, applies, check with SWCorp, the federal agency that enforces it. Elsewhere, check with the local council or state government.
"We divert X% from landfill." Your rate is the weight kept out of landfill, divided by the total weight you generated. Weigh both halves the same way every month, or you get noise instead of a trend. Our diversion rate worksheet works the figure out, and our waste management KPIs guide covers what else to report.
"Our waste is fully accounted for." This is the claim we would steer you towards. It says your recyclables are recycled, and your general waste still goes to landfill through a licensed collector. It rests on two records. The pickup record shows when a collection happened and how much left your site. The facility that received the load shows where it went. Our guide to solid waste regulations in Malaysia explains who licenses collectors in each state.
Phrase your claims as direction and progress, not perfection
Wording decides whether a claim reassures people or invites doubt. "We're keeping more out of landfill every quarter" can be proved with a trend line. "We are a zero-waste company" almost never can.
- Say what you measure, not what you hope. If you track diverted weight, claim diverted weight. Do not stretch it to outcomes you have not checked.
- Show the trend, not just the trophy. A figure that improves over time is easier to believe than one large number with no history.
- Name the boundary and the period. "Across our three outlets in the Klang Valley" is stronger than a company-wide claim you cannot back everywhere. State the period too. Signature Market's 73.69% covers a full year. The mall's 3.2% covers one month.
- Separate recycled from disposed. Credit yourself for what is recycled, and for disposing of the rest properly. Do not blur the two into "all recycled".
- Leave room to grow. "On our way towards zero-waste" is honest. As a finished claim, "zero-waste" has a bar. TRUE certification asks for 90% or more diverted from landfill, incineration and the environment over the most recent 12 months. It does not count waste-to-energy.
A claim anchored to a record is one you can keep making, quarter after quarter. Our guide to zero waste in Malaysia shows the stages on the way there.
GarGeon Connect records every pickup with a photo, a timestamp and the weight
Waste data often sits in the wrong places: a contractor's invoice, a WhatsApp thread, a month-end spreadsheet. None of it was captured to be shown to an auditor.
Each pickup goes on the record as it happens. Those photo-verified pickup records roll up by site into one dashboard. GarGeon works through licensed collectors across KL, Selangor & Johor.
Our sustainability reporting service builds your report from those records, not from estimates. To judge the result, read what should be in your waste management report and our guide to waste data for ESG (environmental, social and governance) reports.
No weights yet? Our free waste audit takes about a week. It gives you the baseline every later claim is measured against. The waste audit guide explains how it works.
Before you publish your next sustainability statement, ask one question of it. If a customer, an auditor or a journalist asked you to prove this, what would you show them? If the answer is a document, you have earned the claim. If it is a hope, close that gap first. Tell us what you want to be able to say about your waste, and we'll show you the data that backs it. Book a consultation to get started.
