What the “Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive” Means for Environmental Claims
Net Zero. Climate Neutral. Sustainable Solution. A future environmental performance claim is only as credible as the evidence behind it. Under the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive, companies must support consumer-facing claims with verifiable commitments and a realistic implementation plan.
How to Substantiate Environmental Claims Under the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive
Terms such as “net zero”, “climate neutral”, “green”, “sustainable solution”, and “eco-friendly” are increasingly used in consumer-facing advertising and product communications. Under the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive (EmpCo), which applies within the scope of EU consumer protection law and focuses on business-to-consumer commercial practices, companies need to ensure that environmental claims made to consumers are not misleading. Where such claims concern future environmental performance, they must be supported by clear, objective, publicly available and verifiable commitments, set out in a detailed and realistic implementation plan that includes measurable and time-bound targets, relevant implementation measures, governance arrangements, and progress monitoring.
Companies should therefore approach consumer-facing environmental claims as a substantiation exercise, not simply a communications exercise. The evidence supporting a claim should be proportionate to its nature, scope and specificity, and sufficiently robust to demonstrate that the claim is clear, accurate and not misleading.
For many organizations, the challenge is not only setting sustainability commitments and targets, but demonstrating how consumer-facing environmental claims that concern future environmental performance are supported in practice. The evidence needs to connect the claim to clear commitments, measurable and time-bound targets, relevant implementation measures, and ongoing monitoring.
When Does EmpCo Apply and Who Is Affected?
Directive (EU) 2024/825 entered into force in February 2024. EU Member States were required to transpose the Directive into national law by March 2026, with the new rules applying from September 2026. Companies should monitor applicable Member State implementing measures in the jurisdictions where they communicate environmental claims to consumers.
The rules apply within the scope of EU consumer protection law, including environmental claims made in business-to-consumer (B2C) commercial communications. The European Commission has clarified that business-to-business (B2B) commercial practices fall outside the scope of the Directive.
For companies, a practical starting point is to distinguish between generic environmental claims and specific claims concerning future environmental performance. The Directive restricts the use of generic environmental claims and established specific substantiation requirements for future environmental performance claims. These claims must be supported by publicly available, verifiable commitments and a credible implementation plan, together with appropriate monitoring and verification arrangements.
How Companies Can Prepare Environmental Claims for Compliance
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- Map environmental claims used in commercial communications and identify the evidence supporting each claim
- Review labels, logos, product names, and visual cues that could be understood by consumers as environmental claims
- For environmental claims concerning future environmental performance, check whether the claim is supported by clear, objective, publicly available and verifiable commitments set out in a detailed and realistic implementation plan
- Consider independent expert review where the Directive requires regular verification of the implementation plan supporting an environmental claim concerning future environmental performance, including assessment of the credibility of the implementation plan, ongoing monitoring of implementation and progress, and public disclosure of the verification findings.
The Future of Environmental Claims Under EmpCo
The Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive raises the standard for consumer-facing environmental claims by shifting the focus from ambition to substantiation. Where a claim concerns future environmental performance, companies need more than a target: they need a clear, evidence-based pathway, supported by a realistic implementation plan and subject to independent expert verification. For companies communicating environmental progress to consumers, the practical question is not only what can be claimed, but whether the evidence, governance, and delivery plan are strong enough to withstand scrutiny.
How ISS-Corporate Supports Environmental Claims Substantiation
Advisory support for evidence-based implementation plans
ISS-Corporate’s advisory offering can support companies in developing evidence-based implementation plans for environmental claims concerning future environmental performance. This may include defining a credible baseline, identifying relevant actions and milestones, aligning governance and monitoring arrangements, and using benchmarking intelligence grounded in access to unparalleled, curated sustainability data to strengthen the evidence base behind the claim.
Independent review under External Review Services
ISS-Corporate’s External Review Services can provide independent review of implementation plans supporting environmental claims concerning future environmental performance. The review can help assess whether the commitments, supporting evidence, milestones, governance arrangements, and monitoring mechanisms are sufficiently clear, realistic, and capable of supporting the claim being communicated. In addition, ISS-Corporate’s periodic monitoring and verification module can assess whether implementation and performance remain aligned with the pathway, targets, and commitments defined in the plan, providing independent verification of progress over time and supporting the credibility of ongoing environmental claims.
Advisory support and External Review Services are distinct, separate services. ISS-Corporate maintains the integrity of its services by managing potential conflicts of interest. Both forms of support are designed to strengthen the defensibility of consumer-facing environmental claims. They should not be understood as a substitute for legal advice or as a guarantee that a particular claim will be accepted by regulators or courts.