The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), which entered into force on 18 July 2024, is the cornerstone of the Commission’s approach to more environmentally sustainable and circular products.
Products and the way we use them can have a significant impact on the environment. Consumption in the EU can therefore be a major cause of climate change and pollution.
The ESPR is part of a package of measures that are central to achieving the objectives of the 2020 Circular Economy Action Plan. They will contribute to helping the EU reach its environmental and climate goals, doubling its circularity rate of material use and to achieving its energy efficiency targets by 2030.
Objectives
The ESPR aims to significantly improve the circularity, energy performance and other environmental sustainability aspects of products placed on the EU market.
By doing so, a significant step will be taken towards better protecting our planet, fostering more sustainable business models and strengthening the overall competitiveness and resilience of the EU economy.
A sustainable product is likely to display one or more of the following characteristics:-
- Uses less energy
- Lasts longer
- Can be easily repaired
- Parts can be easily disassembled and put to further use
- Contains fewer substances of concern
- Can be easily recycled
- Contains more recycled content
- Has a lower carbon and environmental footprint over its lifecycle
Law
The ESPR replaces the current Ecodesign Directive 2009/125/EC and establishes a framework for setting ecodesign requirements on specific product groups.
It enables the setting of performance and information conditions – known as ‘ecodesign requirements’ – for almost all categories of physical goods (with some exceptions, such as food and feed, as defined in Regulation 178/2002), including to:-
- Improve product durability, reusability, upgradability and reparability
- Make products more energy and resource-efficient
- Address the presence of substances that inhibit circularity
- Increase recycled content
- Make products easier to remanufacture and recycle
- Set rules on carbon and environmental footprints
- Improve the availability of information on product sustainability
For groups of products that share enough common characteristics, the framework allows horizontal rules to be set.
The ESPR also contains a number of other new measures:
- Digital Product Passport
- Rules to address the destruction of unsold consumer products
- Green Public procurement
Digital Product Passport
The ESPR will introduce a Digital Product Passport (DPP), a digital identity card for products, components, and materials, which will store relevant information to support products’ sustainability, promote their circularity and strengthen legal compliance.
This information will be accessible electronically, making it easier for consumers, manufacturers, and authorities to make more informed decisions related to sustainability, circularity and regulatory compliance. It will allow custom authorities to perform automatic checks on the existence and authenticity of the DPPs of imported products.
Information to be included in the DPP will be identified by the Commission, in close consultation with all relevant stakeholders, and will depend on the specific product in question. This information can include:
- Product’s technical performance
- Materials and their origins
- Repair activities
- Recycling capabilities
- Lifecycle environmental impacts
Rules to address the destruction of unsold consumer products
Many unsold products in the EU are simply destroyed, a practice that wastes valuable resources. For the first time in the EU, the ESPR introduces measures to address this practice, by introducing a ban on the destruction of unsold textiles and footwear, and opening the way for similar bans in other sectors, if evidence shows they are needed.
It will require large and eventually medium-sized companies across all product sectors to disclose annual information on their website, such as the number and weight of products they discard, as well as their reasons for doing so.
Green Public procurement
Public authorities in the EU spend around €1.8 trillion purchasing works, goods and services.
The ESPR will help steer these funds in a more sustainable direction, by enabling mandatory Green Public Procurement criteria to be set for EU authorities who purchase the products that it will regulate.
This has the potential to significantly boost demand for sustainable products, in turn, further incentivising companies to invest in this area.
Implementation
The ESPR is a framework legislation, meaning concrete product rules will be decided progressively over time, on a product-by-product basis, or horizontally, on the basis of groups of products with similar characteristics.
The process will begin with a prioritisation exercise, followed by publication of a working plan sets out the products and measures to be addressed under the ESPR over a given time period. Development of product rules will then start, based on inclusive planning, detailed impact assessments and regular stakeholder consultation. This will happen through an Ecodesign Forum.
The ESPR Working Plan
To ensure the public and stakeholders are well informed of what is planned under ESPR, the Commission will adopt and regularly update working plans, setting out lists of products and measures that will be assessed. The ESPR text requires the Commission to adopt and publish the first ESPR working plan within 9 months of ESPR’s entry into force, in the first half of 2025. The working plan will cover a minimum period of 3 years.
Preparation for this is already underway: in 2023 the Commission held an Open Public Consultation on what the first ESPR product priorities should be, based on preparatory work being carried out by the Commission’s Joint Research Centre. (A summary of the results of the Open Public Consultation is available here. An updated version of the JRC’s assessment is currently being finalized and will be published here in early 2024.)
In addition, following agreement by the Council and the European Parliament, the ESPR text now includes several products which the Commission will be obliged to prioritise unless there is justification for not doing so. These include:-
- Iron & steel, aluminium, textiles (garments and footwear), furniture (including mattresses), tyres, detergents, paints, lubricants, chemicals, energy-related products (including new measures and revisions of existing ones) and ICT products, as well as other electronics.
All of the above will be taken into account in the development of the first ESPR working plan. Before being adopted by the Commission, however, members of the above-mentioned Ecodesign Forum will be consulted, and their views taken into account.
Ecodesign requirements
The development of ecodesign requirements includes preparatory studies, impact assessments and consultation with stakeholders. Preparatory work, for certain products, such as textiles or steel, has already begun, whilst the work on other prioritised products and potential horizontal measures will begin after the adoption of the first working plan.
Rules on the destruction of unsold consumer products goods
The adoption of the first rules to operationalise measures on the destruction of unsold consumer products goods will happen in the first year of the ESPR entering into force and includes setting a reporting format for the transparency requirements, and defining relevant exemptions to the ban on the destruction of textiles and footwear laid down under the ESPR.
Digital Product Passport
Technical preparation for the roll-out of the Digital Product Passport (DPP) is already underway by the Commission and will include the adoption of rules on the identifiers and data carriers that will be needed, work on access rights to DPP information, as well as the establishment of a DPP registry and web portal, amongst other supporting activities.
Ecodesign from an international perspective
The rules proposed under ESPR will apply to all products placed on the EU market, whether produced inside or outside the EU. ESPR will be compliant with international trade rules and the European Union will continue to work in partnership with producing countries and 3rd country businesses who share the goal of improving the sustainability of their products. Moreover, the EU will be providing support to partner countries and will assess possible impacts on third countries thoroughly. New measures such as the digital product passport will be developed in an open dialogue with international partners to ensure that they help remove trade barriers for greener products and lower costs for sustainable investments, marketing and compliance.
Questions
1)How does the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation differ from the Ecodesign Directive?
| Requirement | Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation | Ecodesign Directive |
| Digital Product Passport | Yes | No |
| Traceability information | Yes | No |
| CE Marking | Yes | Yes |
| Declaration of Conformity | Yes | Yes |
| Technical Documentation | Yes | Yes |
| Instructions | Yes | No |
| Requirements concerning the destruction of unsold consumer goods | Yes | No |
2)What are the requirements for Digital Product Passport?
One of the key requirements that sets the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation from the existing Ecodesign Directive is the requirements concerning the digital product passport.
Products can only be sold if they come with access to a digital product passport, via a data carrier, which can be a linear barcode symbol, a two-dimensional symbol or another medium that can be accessed by a device (e.g. QR code).
In addition to the requirements contained in the Regulation, the data to be inputted into the digital product passport will be contained in the delegated acts. Thus, both the Regulation and the applicable delegated act must be referred to.
Here are some examples of required data to be included in the digital product passport:
- Unique product identifier
- Global Trade Identification Number
- Instructions
- Warnings
- unique operator identifiers
- unique facility identifiers
- Traceable information
Also, the Regulation sets standards affecting the digital product passport.
3)What are the requirements for the declaration of conformity?
You must issue a Declaration of Conformity to communicate compliance with the Regulation and the applicable delegated acts. The model structure contained in Annex V should be referred to when constructing the document.
Additionally, delegated acts should specify conformity assessment procedures that, in turn, should set elements that must be included in the declaration.
Here are some examples of the type of information that must be included in the declaration:
- Product identifier
- Manufacturer’s name and address
- Product description
- Reference to the applicable regulations (e.g. delegated acts)
- Reference to harmonised standards
4)What are the requirements for the Technical documentation?
The Regulation also requires technical documentation. However, the required documents that make up the technical documentation are listed in conformity assessment procedures.
Thus, manufacturers would have to identify the applicable delegated act, confirm which conformity assessment procedure to apply, and then arrange the technical documentation for the product.
5)What are the requirements related to Instructions?
Products covered by delegated acts must be accompanied by:
a. Instructions in digital format
b. Safety information and instructions in a paper format
Digital instructions should be included in the digital product passport which is made accessible through a data carrier. However, if the digital product passport is not applicable, information on how to access the digital instructions can be indicated on the:
- Product
- Packaging
- Accompanying documents
Digital instructions should be provided in a paper format when:
a. A customer requests for it at the time of purchase or within 6 months after purchase
b. The delegated act requires certain information to be provided in paper format
6)Which products are covered by the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation?
The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation applies to any physical products sold in the EU, including components and intermediate products. Delegated acts adopted under the Regulation will specify the products that they cover.
Before delegated acts are introduced, the European Commission will publish working plans that contain product groups which the commission will be prioritising. The first working plan is mentioned in the Regulation. Here are some of the products that are cited:
- Iron and steel
- Aluminium
- Textiles, in particular garments and footwear
- Furniture
- Matresses
- Tyres
- Detergents
- Paints
- Lubricants
- Chemicals
- Energy-related products not covered by the Ecodesign Directive
- Information and communication technology products and other electronics
7)Which products are exempt?
The Regulation does not apply to the following products:
- Food
- Feed
- Medicinal products
- Veterinary medicinal products
- Living plants, animals and micro-organisms;
- Products of human origin;
- Products of plants and animals relating directly to their future reproduction
- Vehicles
8)Is testing mandatory under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation?
Whether testing is mandatory under the Regulation depends on whether your product is affected by a delegated act, which may contain ecodesign requirements that require testing. This would involve testing the product through a lab testing company and retrieving lab test reports demonstrating that the product complies with the applicable requirements.
Even if the delegated act does not contain performance requirements, you may still need lab testing to comply with information requirements (e.g. to test for the presence of substances of concern).
9)What are the labelling requirements?
The Regulation requires that products covered by a delegated act come with various types of labelling information. Below we summarise the key types of labelling information required and provide their respective descriptions.
| Title | Description |
| CE marking | The CE marking indicates that the product conforms to the requirements of this Regulation. |
| Notified body identification number | The identification number of a notified body must follow the CE Marking (if applicable). |
| Special risk or use pictograms | Pictograms or marks indicating special risks or uses can follow CE marking (if applicable). |
| Traceability information | You need to show information such as the following: -Product identification information (e.g. serial number) -Manufacturer’s name -Manufacturer’s postal address -Manufacturer’s electronic means of communication |
| Data carrier | The data carrier allows to access the digital product passport information. Here are some examples of what a data carrier can look like: -Watermark -QR code |
| Information requirements | Delegated acts can contain information requirements that should appear on the product’s label, like information on: -Substances of concern -Instructions for the safe use of the product -Information for disassembly -Preparation for reuse |
Information requirements should be displayed in the digital product passport but delegated acts may require them to be placed:
a. In a label
b. On the product itself
c. On its packaging
With regards to the energy label for energy-related products under Energy Labelling Framework Regulation (EU) 2017/1369, classes of performance determined based on this Regulation should be included in the energy label as provided for in the delegated acts.
10)Delegated acts
The ecodesign requirements of delegated acts can affect a specific product or set common specifications for a group of products.
The delegated acts will be introduced over time and the first delegated act to be adopted should not enter into force before 19 July 2025. The Regulation states that as a general principle, delegated acts would apply no earlier than 18 months after they are introduced.
The ecodesign requirements contained in delegated acts can refer to performance requirements, information requirements, or both. The Regulation sets out the contents of delegated acts. Here are some of the key contents that will be featured in delegated acts:
- Product scope
- Specific performance requirements
- Information requirements
- Conformity procedures
- Harmonised standards
- Requirements for the use of digital tools
- Specific requirements for technical documentation
The performance requirements are based on the relevant product parameters (e.g. use or content of sustainable renewable materials) referred to in Annex I of the Regulation.
The possible information requirements featured in delegated acts are also covered in the Regulation. It can relate to information that must be featured in the digital product passport or that must accompany the product.
Finally, delegated acts should also specify what conformity assessment procedures are available to manufacturers, some of which require engaging a notified body. In practice, a manufacturer must apply a conformity assessment procedure to demonstrate that their product meets the requirements of the delegated act and the Regulation.
11)Standards
Delegated acts may specify harmonised standards. Such harmonised standards may relate to:
- Performance requirements
- Information requirements
- Tests, measurement or calculation methods
If a product meets the requirements contained in harmonised standards, it is presumed to comply with the requirements of the Regulation that are covered by such standards (e.g. performance requirements). As far as we know, there are no harmonised standards affecting products yet that are published under the Regulation.
However, However, our understanding is that energy-related products covered by implementing measures under the Ecodesign Directive should continue to meet the harmonised standards contained in the implementing measures until 31 December 2030.
12)What are the rules concerning the unsold consumer products?
The Regulation requires manufacturers, importers and other economic operators related to the product to take measures concerning the destruction of unsold consumer products.
Such measures should reasonably be expected to prevent the need to destroy such products. However, if such products are destroyed the regulation requires information relating to the discarding of products to be disclosed on the economic operator’s website.
Additionally, the Regulation prohibits the destruction of unsold consumer products listed in Annex VII (e.g. apparel and footwear products). More products may be added to the Annex in the future.
Note that the above disclosure and prohibition requirements do not apply to micro and small enterprises (SMEs), and only apply to medium-sized enterprises from 19 July 2030. Both terms are defined in Annex I of the Commission Recommendation of 6 May 2003 concerning the definition of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (2003/361/EC).