AIM - European Brands Assn. co-signs Joint Industry statement calling on the Council of the EU to ensure a predictable and workable framework for the Green Claims Directive

Brussels, 8 May 2024 – Together with other 13 associations, AIM calls on the Council of the EU to ensure the adoption of a clear, predictable and workable framework for the Green Claims Directive, while simplifying and reducing the burden for companies.

AIM is joining 13 other associations to call on the Council to carefully assess the options for the simplification of the framework under the Green Claims Directive. Our associations remain fully committed to providing pertinent and trustworthy sustainability information to consumers. Informing consumers of a business’s or product’s sustainability profile is a considerable incentive for companies to pursue more sustainable solutions. It is a catalyst for driving innovation and investments, fostering the industry’s competitiveness in sustainability. We therefore support the goal of the Green Claims Directive, which will be key in setting clear rules for environmental claims, creating a level playing field among companies.

While we support the intention of the Council behind the introduction of the simplified procedure to reduce the burden of the substantiation and ex-ante verification requirements, we remain concerned by the Council’s proposed means, as they may lead to unintended additional burden. We thus recommend:

• Including an immediate application of the simplified procedure for those claims that do not require to be substantiated through a full lifecycle assessment, as is the case for claims related to environmental aspects, and those claims whose assessment is based on methodologies that are widely recognised (e.g., ISO, OECD, PEF, EU Ecolabel).
• Avoiding mandating the European Commission to adopt secondary legislation specifying substantiation and communication requirements for each type of environmental claim. This would stretch Commission resources (with increased risk of delays) and result in a positive list, with negative consequences on new claims reflecting innovation.
• Avoiding the duplication of the documentation requirements for environmental claims whose substantiation is based on rules established by other EU legislation or for environmental claims based on awarded labels – ensuring that pre-existing well-recognised labels can receive speedier compliance recognition in relation to the requirements of the Directive.

An agile framework is essential to support the necessary industry investments to reach the ambitious EU climate and environmental goals, as well as ensure the prompt information of the consumer for more sustainable choices.

READ THE JOINT INDUSTRY STATEMENT HERE