Ecodesign Regulation: Council agrees general approach

The European Council has agreed on a negotiating position for the upcoming revision of the Ecodesign Regulation, establishing a framework for setting ecodesign requirements for sustainable products.

The regulation provides the legal framework for harmonised sustainability standards for almost all product groups. The only exceptions are food and feed, human and veterinary medicine, plants, animals, and vehicles. The concrete standards are to be developed through delegated acts by the EU institutions with the involvement of stakeholders.

The European Council agreed that the sustainability criteria of the value chains should be considered holistically. Water and material consumption, recycling, CO2 and environmental footprint, contribution to climate change, as well as water, air and soil pollution are criteria that shall be assessed thoroughly.

Particularly interesting is the proposed ban on the destruction of unsold textile products, as such a ban could be extended to other product groups in the future.

This would be a strong signal, committing to measures preventing overproduction and ultimately environmental protection and resource conservation, strictly following the waste hierarchy.

The European Parliament has not yet agreed on a negotiating position, but this is expected to happen over the summer.

Afterwards, the two institutions will enter the trilogue negotiations which are to be concluded by the beginning of 2024.

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