Sustainability labels and badges: which ones you can still show

What counts as a sustainability label

EmpCo defines a sustainability label as any voluntary trust mark, quality mark or equivalent, either public or private, that aims to set apart and promote a product, a process or a business by reference to its environmental or social characteristics, or both. Mandatory labels required by EU or national law, such as the energy label, are excluded.

That includes much more than certification logos. A badge designed by your theme developer that says “Eco Pick”, a leaf icon with “Planet friendly”, or a “Conscious collection” tag can all be labels if they work as a quality mark.

The new rule

Point 2a of Annex I bans displaying a sustainability label that is not based on a certification scheme or not established by public authorities. Labels from public authorities, such as the EU Ecolabel, are allowed. Private labels need a real certification scheme behind them.

What a certification scheme must have

Under the EmpCo definition, a certification scheme is a third-party verification scheme that certifies that a product, process or business complies with certain requirements, allows the use of a label, and has publicly available terms that meet all of these conditions:

1. it is open, under transparent, fair and non-discriminatory terms, to all traders willing and able to comply;
2. its requirements are developed by the scheme owner in consultation with relevant experts and stakeholders;
3. it sets out procedures for dealing with non-compliance, including withdrawal or suspension of the label;
4. compliance is monitored by a third party that is independent of the scheme owner and the trader, on the basis of international, EU or national standards and procedures.

A label you created yourself, or one awarded by a company that also sells you the right to use it without independent checks, will not meet this.

How to audit the badges in your store

1. Find them. Check product images, theme sections (trust badges, icon rows), collection banners, product tags shown as labels, and apps that add badges.
2. Identify the owner. For each badge, note who issues it and on what basis.
3. Classify. Public authority label, certification scheme, or neither.
4. Remove or replace. Remove labels that are neither. Replace with a specific factual statement where useful (“Made from 100% recycled polyester”).
5. Keep certificates. For labels you keep, store the certificate, scope and expiry date, and check that the label covers the exact product.

Common examples

The status of a specific private scheme depends on its rules. Ask the scheme owner how it meets the EmpCo conditions and keep their answer on file.