The directive, which was adopted today by 593 votes to 21 with 14 abstentions, aims to protect consumers from misleading marketing practices and help them make better purchasing decisions. To achieve this, a number of problematic marketing practices related to greenwashing and premature obsolescence will be added to the EU's list of prohibited business practices.

More accurate and reliable advertising

Most importantly, the new rules aim to make product labeling clearer and more credible by banning the use of general environmental claims such as "organic", "natural", "biodegradable", "climate neutral" or "eco" without proof. The use of sustainability labels will now also be regulated due to the confusion caused by their proliferation and the lack of benchmarking data. In future, only sustainability labels based on official certification schemes or established by public authorities will be allowed in the EU. In addition, the directive will ban claims that a product has a neutral, reduced or positive impact on the environment due to emission compensation schemes.