Environmental claims are now regulated on both sides of the Channel with real enforcement teeth. If your marketing uses terms like “sustainable”, “carbon neutral”, “eco-friendly”, or “recyclable”, this article explains the regulations you need to comply with and the risks of getting it wrong.
EU: Empowering Consumers Directive (2024/825)
Directive (EU) 2024/825 amends the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive and applies from 27 September 2026. Key prohibitions include:
- Generic environmental claims (“green”, “eco-friendly”, “sustainable”) are banned unless substantiated by recognised environmental performance
- Product-level carbon-neutral claims based solely on purchasing carbon offsets are prohibited
- Durability, repairability, and recyclability claims must meet specific evidence standards
- Sustainability labels must be based on official certification schemes or established by public authorities
The proposed Green Claims Directive (which would have required pre-approval of environmental claims) has been effectively withdrawn as part of the EU’s Omnibus simplification package. The EmpCo Directive is now the operative law governing environmental claims in the EU.
UK: CMA Direct Enforcement Under the DMCC Act 2024
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 gave the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) direct enforcement powers from 6 April 2025. The CMA can now:
- Impose fines of up to 10% of global turnover for misleading environmental claims
- Act without needing a court order — a significant acceleration of enforcement
- Issue compliance directions and accept undertakings
The CMA’s Green Claims Code sets out six principles that environmental claims must satisfy:
- Truthful and accurate
- Clear and unambiguous
- Must not omit or hide important information
- Only make fair and meaningful comparisons
- Consider the full lifecycle of the product or service
- Be substantiated with robust, credible, and up-to-date evidence
ASA Enforcement Is Intensifying
The Advertising Standards Authority has upheld complaints against major brands for vague or unsubstantiated environmental claims. ASA rulings often precede CMA enforcement interest — treating an ASA finding as a warning sign rather than the final word is prudent risk management.
ISO 14021: The International Baseline
ISO 14021:2016 (Environmental labels and declarations — Self-declared environmental claims) prohibits vague and non-specific claims. It provides the internationally recognised methodology for substantiation, comparability, and claim-specific tests. Both the CMA and EU regulators reference ISO 14021 as a substantiation benchmark.
What Should You Do Now?
- Audit all environmental claims across your website, packaging, annual report, social media, and advertising materials
- Test each claim against the CMA Green Claims Code (6 principles), EU EmpCo requirements, and ISO 14021
- Withdraw or reword claims that cannot be substantiated — before a regulator or the ASA does it for you
- Establish a claims governance process to prevent new unsubstantiated claims entering your marketing
- Consider a professional Green Claims Audit to systematically identify and remediate exposure
RSustain Advisory
RSustain’s Green Claims Audit provides a systematic review of all environmental claims, tested against CMA, EU, ASA, and ISO standards. The output is a RAG-rated risk register with specific remediation actions and compliant alternative wording. Book a free scoping call.
RSustain UK provides advisory services only.