- Strengthening the competitiveness of market participants who are genuinely committed to the environmental compatibility of their products
- Complementing EU consumer protection and environmental standards
Requirements for labelling environmental impacts:
All companies that make claims about the environmental compatibility of their products, services, or the company itself are affected.
The proposed directive advocates that:
- environmental claims may only be made on a data-based foundation
- it must be precisely clarified which part of the product the environmental claim refers to
- environmental claims may only be made if the environmental performance goes beyond the legally prescribed minimum
- positive environmental impacts may only be advertised if they are not offset by side effects
- environmental labels must in future comply with EU requirements regarding transparency and scientific assessment methodology
- consumers are provided with further information on the environmental performance of a product via QR code or web link
- all claims regarding environmental performance must be approved by an independent verification body before being placed on the market
Microenterprises with fewer than 10 employees and an annual turnover of no more than €2 million are exempt.
In the event of non-compliance with the directive, the following sanctions may apply:
- Fines that vary depending on the amount of economic advantage gained
- Confiscation of the revenues generated by falsely labelled products
- Exclusion from public tenders and support services for up to 12 months
Furthermore, companies can expect a boycott by customers whose trust in the company has been abused through greenwashing marketing.
When does the directive come into force?
The proposed directive currently has to go through the EU legislative procedure. After that, EU member states have 18 months to incorporate the directive into their national law. Subsequently, up to 6 more months may pass before the regulation finally comes into force.
These are the measures companies can take now
1. Review your own practices:
Companies can already carefully review their sustainability practices, claims, and communications in order to identify and avoid any potentially misleading communication measures.
2. Collaboration with stakeholders:
Engaging with stakeholders such as customers, employees, and investors can help companies better understand expectations and requirements regarding sustainability. Through dialogue and the involvement of stakeholders, companies can demonstrate their commitment to transparency and sustainability and receive valuable feedback to continuously improve their practices.
3. Employee training
Training employees in the area of ESG helps to foster awareness of ecological and social sustainability within the company, thereby strengthening the motivation for genuine sustainability efforts instead of engaging in greenwashing.
Our Glacier Climate Academy offers this anti-greenwashing training in the Climate Action Essentials module of the same name. Get started now and master truthful environmental communication together with your entire workforce!
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