The EU's War on Greenwashing
For years, the European Union asked corporations nicely to be honest about their environmental impact. They introduced voluntary guidelines and encouraged self-regulation. But when the European Commission conducted a massive sweep of the market, the results were disastrous: over 50% of environmental claims on products were vague, misleading, or completely unfounded.
The market was broken. Companies spending millions to truly decarbonize their supply chains were being out-competed by fast-fashion brands slapping a fake "Green Choice" sticker on heavily polluting products.
In response, the EU launched a regulatory war on greenwashing, culminating in two massive pieces of legislation: The Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (ECGT) Directive and the Green Claims Directive (GCD).