Green claims like “emission-free” and “climate-neutral” are unavoidable in advertising. But these environment-related advertising statements are of limited significance for consumers. A 2020 study by the European Commission categorised more than half of all green claims in the EU as vague, misleading or unfounded.
To counter this, rules on voluntary communication will be tightened in the EU.
France has already taken action with a new law that applies clear conditions to environment-related advertising, which has been in effect since 1 January 2023.
Both above-mentioned EU directives set stricter rules for B2C claims on business and product level made by companies on the EU market. They focus a lot on sustainability claims. The new guidelines introduce uniform standards for environment-related advertising to ensure that green claims are reliable, based on scientific evidence, comparable and verifiable. The goal is to prevent greenwashing and empower consumers in the EU to make informed purchasing decisions.
Companies that violate the new standards will be fined.
The new rules are not yet law. Although the EU Parliament has already adopted the revised UCPD, the specific provisions in the Green Claims Directive might still change, as this directive is still going through the legislative pipeline.
The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive is expected to come into force in all Member States as early as Q3 2026. The Green Claims Directive is expected to enter into force in 2028 at the latest.
The Green Claims Directive applies to all companies established in Europe, including subsidiaries. Only small companies with an annual turnover of less than 2 million euros and fewer than ten employees will be exempt. The EU plans special support measures for SMEs.
Since 1 January 2023, France has been subject to a law (Art. L229-68 du code de l’environnement) that imposes strict conditions on environment-related advertising. Terms like “climate-neutral” and similar formulations are only allowed in advertising for a product or service if the company in question:
With the “Engaged for Impact”label, myclimate has developed a label that already fulfils the new requirements, enabling companies to prove specifically, in accordance with scientific standards and verified by independent third parties, that they are saving as many emissions in host countries as they are emitting themselves. This puts credibility around their own reduction measures up front in their communications.
Experts from myclimate put together carbon footprint calculations, subject to plausibility checks, which serve as the basis for calculations. Products and services that bear the impact label will continue to fulfil applicable criteria, even when the tighter regulations are introduced.
Sources:
UCPD:
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/commissions/imco/inag/2023/10-25/IMCO_AG(2023)756006_EN.pdf
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You can find further exciting information on the subject of climate change and climate protection in our climate booklet