Green products and services : what's in it for you?
Date: 2016-08-29
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment
Subjects: durable goods, eco-label, energy efficiency, environmental economics, environmental impact, job creation, producer co-responsibility, product life, sustainable development, waste recycling

K
H
-
0
2
-
1
6
-
4
5
1
-
E
N
N

-

©
E
u
r
o
p
e
a
n
U
n
o
n

i

,

2
0
1
6

It’s time to close the loop and 
invest in the circular economy 
and green growth!

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 
EU green growth policies have a direct 
benefit on our health, the economy 
and the environment

EU Ecolabel:  
www.ecolabel.eu

Environmental Footprint Pilots:  
ec.europa.eu/environment/eussd/smgp/
ef_pilots.htm

European Fund for Strategic 
Investments (EFSI):  
www.eib.org/efsi/

EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme 
(EMAS): 
ec.europa.eu/environment/emas/index_
en.htm

Environmental Technology 
Verification(ETV): 
ec.europa.eu/environment/etv/

EUEnvironment

EU_ENV

EU POLICY HELPS TO CREATE 
GREEN GROWTH AND JOBS

Increasing resource productivity by 
30 % by 2030 could create two million 
more jobs. The circular economy 
can reduce annual greenhouse gas 
emissions by 2-4 %.

This is why over €650 million for 
‘industry in the circular economy’ has 
been earmarked in Horizon 2020, 
the EU’s current funding programme, 
alongside other EU-wide funds 
and initiatives helping to stimulate 
green growth.

YOUR ACTIONS COUNT…

Citizens can make a difference by looking 
out for the EU Ecolabel and EU energy 
label and using their spending power to 
make change happen.  

Green products and services present 
European citizens with new business 
opportunities, sustainable solutions and 
better quality. That’s a win-win-win! 

Did you know  …

GREEN 
PRODUCTS 
AND SERVICES  

What’s in it for you?

By 2050, if we follow our current 
consumption path, we will be extracting 
five times more 
resources than we do today

75 % of citizens say they are ready 
to buy environmentally-friendly products, 
even if it means paying a little more

What exactly are green products 
and services? 

Why should businesses 
and citizens be interested? 

Do green products and services 
make economic sense? 

How can I be sure that a product 
is really green?

Get the full green story!

Waste prevention, ecodesign and 
re-use could bring net savings of 
€600 billion for EU businesses 
which can be passed on to consumers

If 95 % of mobile phones were 
collected, manufacturers could 
save €1 billion 
in material costs

ISBN 978-92-79-58355-1
doi:10.2779/856898

Environment

 
 
 
GREEN BUSINESS MEANS  
GOOD BUSINESS!

With greener products and services on the market, 
we all stand to benefit: consumers, businesses and the environment.

MORE RECYCLABLE 

LONGER LASTING 

How can we save the resources contained 
in a TV or computer screen?

The EU aims to make it easier to dismantle,
reuse and recycle electronic displays

Why do many products only seem to last a few years? 

An EU-funded independent testing programme 
is being prepared to help identify issues related 
to planned obsolescence across industry 

Smart, 
sustainable 
growth…

Green products and services are essential 
to achieve smart, sustainable growth. 

They should …

   help save energy 

   be free of toxic compounds 

 be made of recycled or reused 
materials 

   be durable and easily repaired 

 minimise environmental impact 
during a product’s entire life cycle 

… but not every green product and 
service is as green as it could be!

Which is why the Commission challenges 
misleading green claims and has 
published compliance criteria on 
environmental claims. 

LOOK FOR THE EU ECOLABEL! 

The EU Ecolabel logo makes it 
simple to identify environmentally 
friendly products and services. 
Over 36 400 products and services 
already have it! Find out more here: 
www.ecolabel.eu

EASIER TO FIX

Why is it almost impossible to find spare pieces? 

Starting in 2016, ecodesign critieria
will systematically look into the reparability 
of products

BETTER INFORMATION

Many consumers think that products do not 
provide enough environmental information.

The EU is also working on providing more 
information through the Product Environmental 
Footprint initiative, a new method to measure 
the impacts of products on the environment.

CLOSING THE LOOP… 
IT’S THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Green products and services are critical 
to the circular economy, which aims 
to close the loop of product life cycles 
through recycling and re-use. 

Other elements of the Circular Economy 
Package include:

 Recycling 75 % of packaging 
waste by 2030 

 Reducing marine litter by at least 
25 % by 2030

 Tackling food waste 

 Improving waste management 
in construction and demolition 

 Achieving green buildings by 
taking into account resource use 
during a building’s life cycle 

SUSTAINABLE PLANS 

The Commission’s 2015 Circular 
Economy Package sets out in detail how 
to boost  EU global competitiveness by 
fostering sustainable economic growth 
and generating new jobs. 
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/
circular-economy/index_en.htm