.svg)
On March 22, 2023 the European Commission proposed a Directive on Green claims, putting forward new rules to stop misleading environmental claims and ensure trustworthy information on the sustainability of products.
Estimated there are about 200+ environmental labels in use in the EU, with half lacking verification from a third party. This leads to confusion for consumers and creates an uneven playing field for companies making a genuine effort to improve their environmental performance.
The main objective of the Green Claims Directive is to combat greenwashing (false product claims) by establishing clear guidelines for companies on promoting environmental claims to consumers.
Timeline
The European Commission paused the negotiation of the GCD in June 2025, causing uncertainty about its final form. The Commission announced it’s intention to withdraw the GCD. The decision esd made after feedback that the proposal could create disproportionate requirements for small and micro-enterprises. Final negotiations were cancelled.
Member States would have to ensure that companies carry out an assessment to substantiate explicit environmental claims, meeting a number of requirements, including:
specifying if the claim concerns the whole product or part of it, or if the claim concerns all activities of a company or only some of them;
basing claims on widely recognized scientific evidence, using accurate information and international standards;
taking a life-cycle perspective;
taking all the significant environmental aspects and impacts into account to assess the environmental performance;
and more
Obviously using third party verified EPD data to substantiate claims will be a solid way to go forward.
