GAIA VEGEZZI’s Post

European Parliament has given its final green light to a directive that will improve product labelling and ban the use of misleading environmental claims. The new directive will go further than most existing frameworks to address #greenwashing : * Generic environmental claims: banning the use of general environmental claims like “environmentally friendly”, “natural”, “biodegradable”, “climate neutral” or “eco” without proof. * Eco-labels: Only sustainability labels based on approved certification schemes or established by public authorities will be allowed in the EU. * Offsetting: banning claims that a product has a neutral, reduced or positive impact on the environment because of emissions offsetting schemes. The directive now also needs to receive final approval from the European Council, after which it will be published in the Official Journal and member states will have 24 months to transpose it into national law. https://lnkd.in/g4AY8xvK #ESGwashing

🎤🍃 One day to go until our Green Claims Directive webinar 🎤🍃 Register now to join our session tomorrow with Laura Scherer, who will provide a clear understanding of what the Green Claims Directive means for businesses and discuss points such as: 💡 The purpose and objectives of the Green Claims Directive 💡The key measures contained in the Directive 💡The timeline for implementation and what it means for businesses 💡The practicalities - from meeting the requirements of the Directive to the impact on marketing strategies Book your place now and don't miss the opportunity to learn how the proposed Directive would set detailed rules for the substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims about products in business-to-consumer commercial practices.✨ #Green Claims Directive #Circularity #Environmental Claims #Sustainability

The EU takes a stand on greenwashing. The European Parliament voted on the Green Claims Directive on January 17, 2024. The directive aims to protect consumers from misleading or unsubstantiated environmental claims made by businesses about their products or services. The directive also bans the use of carbon offsetting schemes to justify green claims, and requires independent verification of environmental labels and information. The directive is part of the EU’s efforts to foster a green and circular economy, and empower consumers to make informed choices. The directive still needs to be approved by the Council of the EU before it becomes law. #greenwashingcurb

🌍 Green Claims Directive: EU Council Ready to Start Talks with European Parliament In a significant move to combat greenwashing and help consumers make truly eco-friendly choices, the EU Council has adopted its position on the Green Claims Directive. 🚀♻️ 🔍 Key Points of the Directive: Clear Criteria: Companies must use clear criteria and the latest scientific evidence to substantiate environmental claims and labels, which must be easy to understand and specific about environmental benefits like durability or recyclability. Verification: All green claims need third-party verification before publication. A simplified process allows certain claims to bypass this if a technical document is completed. Microenterprise Support: Small businesses have an additional 14 months to comply and will receive guidelines, tools, financial support, and training. Public Labels: Existing national or regional labeling schemes can be exempt from third-party verification if they meet EU standards. Climate Claims: Companies must provide detailed information about carbon credits and prove progress toward net-zero targets for offset claims. 🔜 Next Steps: The Council’s position will now be the basis for negotiations with the European Parliament, expected to start in the next legislative cycle. 🌱 This directive, part of the European Green Deal, aims to enhance transparency and help achieve climate neutrality in the EU by 2050. #ACS #RoSurse #CircularEconomy #GreenDeal #Sustainability #GreenClaims #EcologicalTransparency #ConsumerProtection

In a move to combat greenwashing, the European Union proposed a Directive on Green Claims, set by the EU Commission in March 2023. This initiative aims to set the standard for environmental claims by businesses, enforcing reliability and verifiability standards based on robust scientific methods.   Read more here: https://lnkd.in/epMUhA8M   #EU #GreenClaimsDirective #greenwashing #environmentalpolicy #packagingpolicy #consumerawareness 

🚨 New Green Claims Directive 🚨 The European Council is gearing up to start negotiations with the European Parliament on the new Green Claims Directive. This initiative aims to combat greenwashing and ensure that companies’ environmental claims are reliable, comparable, and verifiable. Key highlights: 📋 Third-party verification: environmental claims must be independently verified. 🌍 Strict Carbon Credits regulation: clear distinction between emissions reductions and removals. 🏷️ Transparent labelling: new rules for conflict-free, scientifically reviewed environmental labels. Although the directive's aim of creating a more sustainable market is commendable, it will undoubtedly increase the administrative burden on businesses. Nevertheless, if successfully implemented, it will set a significant global precedent for environmental legislation. #Sustainability #GreenClaimsDirective #EU #EnvironmentalPolicy #Greenwashing #CorporateResponsibility #SustainableBusiness

Again, something that brings in quality management features - assessment process, review and approval, change control, risk management and validation.

The Green Claims Directive (GCD) is an important step in the EU's efforts to regulate environmental claims and combat greenwashing. It aims to protect consumers from misleading environmental claims while encouraging corporate environmental action. The directive addresses product and corporate claims, but controversies and a lack of regulations have undermined consumer trust. The EU has recently introduced the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (ECGT) Directive and is now complementing it with the GCD to ensure that climate-neutral claims are credible and substantiated. The GCD mandates independent verification of claims, but there is a need for clear definitions, science-based offsets, and inclusion of the like-for-like principle to strengthen environmental claims in the EU. The Committees in the European Parliament have amended the GCD to include many of these criteria, and the upcoming vote by the Parliament Plenary is expected to improve the directive further. The challenge is ensuring that the Council aligns with the Parliament's lead and integrates the proposed criteria into the GCD to drive corporate investments in the green transition. Read an excellent article from Sebastian Manhart. https://t.co/aXjdWV5m3x

Developments underway for the EU Green Claims Directive (GCD) 🌱 The Internal Market and Environment committees adopted on Wednesday their position on the rules on how firms can validate their environmental marketing claims. 🇪🇺Building on the EU's commitment to combat greenwashing, the GCD sets clear guidelines for companies, defining the information necessary to justify environmental marketing claims. This directive establishes a framework with deadlines for evidence verification and approval, outlining penalties for non-compliance. 🧮 MEPs confirmed the recent EU ban on green claims based solely on the so-called carbon offsetting schemes. They now specify that companies could still mention offsetting schemes if they have already reduced their emissions as much as possible and use these schemes for residual emissions only. The carbon credits of the schemes must be certified, as established under the Carbon Removals Certification Framework. Read the full press release below 👇 #euregulations #sustainability #greenclaimsdirective https://lnkd.in/e9BnUcXq

https://lnkd.in/eGqJNZJn Expected more severe and harmonised legislation in view of combating the so damaging greenwashing, a good opportunity for consultants <<The Proposed Green Claims Directive would introduce a number of rules for companies making environmental claims. The rules would apply to almost all companies doing business in the EU (excluding micro‑enterprises). However, the rules would not apply to environmental claims that are already subject to more specific rules (e.g., organic claims; energy labelling) and non‑environmental sustainability claims (e.g., claims referring to social impact). The key points to understand are: The rules would apply to explicit environmental claims, either in textual form or contained in an environmental label: At this stage, it is not yet clear whether the EU plans to introduce new rules for implicit environmental claims e.g. using “environmental”‑themed colors or images on product packaging. If not, those kinds of business practices would remain subject to existing national laws. This may lead to variation in how different national authorities enforce against companies — as some may be more tolerant of the “overall impression” provided by the packaging or advertising than others..>>