Regulation (EU) 1781/2024 was published in the Official Journal of the European Union during last June. Known as the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), it sets forth comprehensive ecodesign requirements aiming at enhancing the sustainability of products available in the EU market.
Table of Contents
Framework for Sustainable Product Design
Regulation (EU) 1781/2024 introduces a robust framework for defining ecodesign requirements that products must follow before being placed on the market. The primary objective is to promote environmental sustainability, ensuring that sustainable products become the norm. This includes reducing their carbon footprint and overall environmental impact throughout their life cycle, while also ensuring their free distribution within the internal market.
Digital Product Passport and Green Public Procurement
A notable change the ESPR implements is the digital product passport, a set of data specific to a product, located on its packaging or on itself. This aims to enhance end-to-end traceability of a product throughout its value chain and also help consumers gain digital access to its information, enhancing their ability for product comparison. Additionally, the regulation provides for the setting of mandatory green public procurement requirements (Article 65) and creates a framework to prevent unsold consumer products from being destroyed (Chapter 4).
Initial Focus Areas
The European Commission is tasked with adopting a working plan to prioritize products that must comply with the ecodesign requirements. For the initial work program (between 2024 and 2027), priority products include iron, steel, aluminum, textiles (especially clothing and footwear), detergents, paints, chemicals, information and communication technology products, and other electronic items.
Ecodesign Criteria
Article 5 of the ESPR outlines specific ecodesign criteria, such as durability, reusability, recycled content, recyclability, anticipated waste generation, and more. The aforementioned criteria aim to ensure that products are designed with sustainability in mind since their beginning.
Conclusion
Regulation (EU) 1781/2024 marks a transformative step towards a more sustainable future within Europe. By establishing some ecodesign requirements and promoting innovative tools like the digital product passport, ESPR aims to make sustainable products the standard market approach and, at the same time, reduce ecological footprint of Europe.
For more information, you can access the full text of the Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 on EUR-Lex website.
