A little reminder
-> The directive was adopted on February 28, 2024, and member states had until March 27, 2026 to transpose it.
-> The directive will come into force on September 27, 2026.
Commission clarifies green claim rules: graphics, words, labels under magnifying glass
In the document, the Commission answered 21 questions. Among them were:
- To detail that a graphic alone (green leaf, water droplet, blue/green background) without a verbal layer is not a general claim - because by definition such claims are „made in written or oral form.” But graphics combined with text or logos can already make them. Sounds are also included in the answers!
- The words „green,” „blue,” „eco” in a brand/product name are not automatically an environmental claim - the assessment depends on the context and whether the average consumer would expect an environmental benefit from it.
- „Organic”/”bio”/”eco” for food - remains permitted under lex specialis (Regulation 2018/848), even if it would technically meet the definition of a generic environmental claim.
- „Vegan”/”vegetarian” - are not automatically sustainability labels; classification depends on context and whether the implied environmental/social benefit appears there (e.g., „vegan = better for the planet” - then yes).
- The independent expert can be private - it could be an auditing or consulting firm; the directive does not require a public body.
- After September 27, 2026, stickers covering/correcting inconsistent claims and supplementary information at the point of sale are allowed - the Commission explicitly points this out as a practical option.
National transposition of the directive: definitional compromises, rigid deadlines
In Poland, the UC 111 bill is currently past the opinion stage (it ended on 22.04, nearly a month after the transposition deadline), and is currently in the Committee for European Affairs.
A total of 125 comments were submitted in the national consultation.
The most frequently raised issues were demands to make the definitions of „certification system” and „independent expert” more flexible and open, which, in the original draft, rigorously and inconsistently with the directive, restricted the market only to narrow ISO standards and PCA accreditation. There were also repeated requests from the FMCG and energy industries to introduce transition periods for the consumption of packaging stocks with existing claims.
The OCC's final resolutions were characterized by compromises of a legislative nature, but the lack of concessions in the area of deadlines: The Authority has incorporated key definitional comments, changing, among other things, the architecture of the certification system to an open model, and modifying the unfortunate term „greenness claim” to „environmental claim.”. At the same time, requests to postpone the entry into force of the legislation were completely rejected (keeping a firm date September 27, 2026. resulting from maximum harmonization of the EU directive) - without a „grandfathering” clause. Also rejected were demands beyond the scope of implementation, such as regulation of the liability of marketplace platforms or changes to the Civil Code.
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