As part of the European Green Deal, the European Commission (EC) proposed a package of measures to make sustainable products the standard across the EU and promote circular business models today. In line with the Circular Economy Action Plan, the Commission presented tools for the transition to a fully circular EU economy that is less dependent on energy and resources. The new rules envisage that almost all physical goods in the EU internal market, throughout their life cycle, from design to daily use of products to disposal or repurposing, should become more environmentally friendly, circular and energy efficient.
In addition to proposals to empower consumers in the green transition by better informing them about the environmental sustainability of products and protecting them from greenwashing, the package includes:
Making sustainable products the new standard:
- The new Ecodesign Regulation proposal requires sustainable products to be designed to be more energy and resource efficient, sustainable and reliable, and that products can be reused, repaired, and easily maintained, refurbished or recycled.
- This will expand the existing ecodesign framework to cover the widest possible range of products and broaden the scope of the requirements that products must meet. It also provides for the continuous setting of requirements for products or product groups by the Commission, which will work closely together with all stakeholders.
Sustainable and recyclable textiles:
- The EU Sustainable and Recyclable Textiles Strategy includes concrete measures to avoid ‘fast fashion’, textile waste and the destruction of unsold textiles within the EU. Textile products should become more durable or be able to be repaired, reused or recycled, be made of recycled fibers, free of harmful substances and produced in a socially responsible and sustainable manner by 2030 the latest.
Jutta Gurkmann, vzbv executive, commented: "The proposed ecodesign requirements are fundamentally suitable for providing the framework for an environmentally friendly product policy from which consumers also benefit. However, the proposals do not go far enough in terms of consumer rights. Despite new information requirements, there is a lack of mandatory information on the expected service life of products, to which the duration of consumers' warranty rights would have to be adjusted. As part of the Green Transition, the European Commission must ensure that goods last longer and that fewer disposable products are produced. It is not enough for retailers to provide information on whether manufacturers voluntarily extend warranties. For many consumers, the environmental properties of products play an important role in their purchasing decisions. Statements on sustainability must therefore not just be lip service but must be comprehensible to consumers and stand up to a fact check."
Source: EC & vzbv
More information & vzbv press statement