As of June 2025, negotiations around the Green Claims Directive are on hold after the EU Commission announced it was withdrawing the proposal following a lack of support and concerns around the requirements for SMEs.
Some critics argued that the Directive was incompatible with the drive for simplification, deregulation and enabling competitiveness in the EU. There are currently varying levels of support across EU markets; some member states are pushing to continue negotiations while others have withdrawn support entirely. It is possible that an amended draft may regain support, but this is a developing situation.
While we wait for more clarity, we explore some of the expected impacts on businesses and how to navigate the evolving landscape.
What is the EU Green Claims Directive?
The Green Claims Directive is a proposed piece of legislation in the EU aiming to crack down on greenwashing by businesses and protect consumers from misleading environmental claims. It applies to all businesses selling products and services in the EU market. The Directive aims to provide:
- Clear criteria on how companies should prove their environmental claims and labels.
- Requirements for these claims and labels to be checked by an independent and accredited verifier.
- New rules on the governance of environmental labelling schemes to ensure they are solid, transparent and reliable.
What would the impact be if the Green Claims Directive were to be withdrawn?
The withdrawal of the Green Claims Directive is unlikely to have a significant impact on the governance of green claims in Europe. Many member states have already put enforcement and guidance measures in place to regulate greenwashing, such as France’s Anti-Greenwashing Guide and its Fast Fashion bill, and international sector-wide measures such as for the aviation industry.
As well as enforcement at national government level, consumer awareness of green claims continues to rise, and with that, so does scrutiny of the claims and labels they see on the products and services they purchase. It’s important that companies continue to follow international best practice when it comes to making green claims, as set out in the EU Green Claims Directive and other pieces of regulation, to avoid unintentionally misleading consumers and potential greenwashing accusations.
Outside the EU, we’re seeing similar regulatory developments in this space. In China, for example, the Regulations on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests, which came into effect in July 2024, requires business to provide necessary information to consumers and avoid misleading or deceptive claims. In Canada, the Competition Bureau has amended its Competitions Act to specifically include anti-greenwashing measures, and has published an anti-greenwashing guide for businesses.
Stricter regulation in the green claims space is a trend we’re seeing globally and we expect it to continue.
What other regulations are in place to enforce green claims in Europe?
From September 2026, another directive including restrictions on green claims in the EU, the Empowering Consumers Directive, is set to be implemented by member states. Amongst other clauses, this Directive:
- prohibits the use of generic environmental claims, like ‘eco-friendly’ or ‘green’;
- enforces additional requirements for claims about future environmental performance
- requires sustainability labels to be established by an approved certification scheme; and
- prohibits claims like ‘carbon neutrality’ if based on carbon offsetting.
This Directive amends the existing Unfair Commercial Practices Directive and the Consumer Rights Directive.
What does this mean for businesses making green claims?
Given the complexities of the regulatory landscape and growing consumer awareness of green claims, it’s more important than ever that businesses follow best practice when making environmental claims and ensure buy-in from marketing, legal and sustainability colleagues. Companies should continue to closely monitor the regulatory landscape and prepare for compliance with the Empowering Consumers Directive by September 2026, even if the Green Claims Directive is withdrawn.
There is also an opportunity to be bold and impactful in your sustainability communications. With many companies choosing to underreport or avoid talking about their climate action due to the fear of backlash, also known as ‘greenhushing’, those companies that take the leap and communicate with transparency and rigour have the chance to become market leaders and reap the rewards of increased consumer trust, particularly among the growing conscious consumer-base.
How are UK businesses impacted?
All UK businesses operating in or selling products and services in any EU country must comply with the Empowering Consumers Directive (and the Green Claims Directive if it is passed).
And it’s not just in the EU that compliance and transparency are key. The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has also published its Green Claims Code, which outlines the six key principles to making a green claim; that claims must be truthful, accurate, clear, substantiated, and consider the full lifecycle of the product.
Earlier this year, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 came into effect, giving the CMA the power to issue fines up to £300,000 or 10% of annual turnover for companies in breach of the Green Claims Code.
How we can help
Third-party verification is a crucial way for businesses to add credibility and rigour to claims, and foster trust among your customers and other stakeholders. As assurance experts with two decades of experience verifying product carbon footprints and having led the development of the first product carbon footprint standard in 2007, the Carbon Trust is well placed to help you make claims that stand up to scrutiny.
Adding a recognisable stamp of approval from a trusted third party like the Carbon Trust label will also help you communicate the work you are doing to decarbonise to your customers in a way that is transparent and impactful. Our label was the first of its kind, launched in 2008, and since then has grown to become the most recognised carbon label globally, appearing on products in over 40 countries, such as Tetra Pak packaging, Nescafe coffee and Sony headphones.
To take your claims to the next level in terms of transparency, we launched the Carbon Trust label directory – a platform showcasing products holding our label, with additional evidence and detail to back up each claim and give consumers the confidence they need to make more sustainable purchasing decisions.
