Sustainable products: the European Commission's ambitious plans to redesign consumer products
Source: https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=bd4d7a2b-522a-4188-bb97-13627e8d6147
Author: Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
As part of its ambitious European Green Deal growth strategy to make the EU climate neutral by 2050, the European Commission has unveiled radical proposals to overhaul product design and labelling. The new legal framework plans to boost the circularity of a wide variety of products, including electronics, ICT (Information and Communications Technology) products and textiles, plus intermediate products like iron and steel. With new rules on labelling and reporting on the number of unsold goods discarded annually, manufacturers as well as retailers and online marketplaces will fall under the scope of these ambitious plans to reduce the climate impact of products sold in the EU single market. Today, the European Commission published its Sustainable Products Initiative. It repeals the existing Ecodesign Directive and creates a new harmonised regulation, whilst also amending the market surveillance regulation. Currently, Ecodesign provides rules to improve the environmental performance of energy-related products, like vacuum cleaners and fridges, setting mandatory energy efficiency requirements. The market surveillance regulation harmonises EU level requirements on non-food products to protect consumers, health and safety, and the environment.