European Commission launches Green Consumption Pledge

03 Feb '21

3 min read

Pic: European Commission

The European Commission recently launched a Green Consumption Pledge, the first initiative delivered under the New Consumer Agenda and part of the European Climate Pact, a European Union (EU) initiative inviting people, communities and organisations to participate in climate action and build a greener Europe. Signatories promise to accelerate contribution to a green transition.

The Green Consumption Pledge comprises five core pledges. To join it, companies commit to ambitious actions to improve their environmental impact and to help consumers make more sustainable purchases.

They have to take concrete measures in at least three of the five pledge areas and they need to prove their progress with data that they then make public. Each pledging company will work with the Commission in complete transparency to ensure that the progress is reliable and verifiable.

The five core pledge areas are the following:

1) Calculate the carbon footprint of the company, including its supply chain, using the calculation methodology or environmental management scheme developed by the Commission, and establish proper due diligence processes towards achieving footprint reductions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

2) Calculate the carbon footprint of selected flagship products of the company, using the methodology developed by the Commission, and to achieve certain footprint reductions for the selected products and disclose the progress to the general public.

3) Increase the sale of sustainable products or services within the total sales of the company or its selected business part.

4) Commit part of the corporate public relations expenditure to the promotion of sustainable practices in line the Commission's implementation of the European Green Deal policies and actions.

5) ensure information provided to consumers in relation to the company and product carbon footprints is easy to access, accurate and clear, and maintain this information up-to-date following any reductions or increases of the footprints.

The pledges have been developed in a joint effort between the Commission and companies. Their aim is to accelerate the contribution of businesses to a sustainable economic recovery and to build consumer trust in the environmental performance of companies and products, said an EU press release.

The functioning of the pledges will be assessed in a year from now, before next steps are taken. Any company from the non-food sectors as well as companies in the retail sector selling both food and non-food products interested in joining the Green Pledge can contact the European Commission before the end of March 2021. This initial pilot phase of the Pledge will be completed by January 2022.

The green transition is one of the key priorities of the New Consumer Agenda, aiming to ensure that sustainable products are available to consumers on the EU market and that consumers have better information to be able to make informed choices.

The European Climate Pact, adopted on 9 December 2020, aims to help spread scientifically sound information about climate action and provide practical advice for everyday life choices. It will support local initiatives and encourage climate action pledges by individuals or collectives, helping to mobilise support and participation.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

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