On 28 February 2024, the EU Directive 2024/825 (so-called Greenwashing Directive) was approved, which aims to regulate commercial communication in order to enable consumers to make environmentally sustainable choices.
One of the most significant innovations is the inclusion of environmentally relevant characteristics of products to which misleading information may relate, such as durability, reparability or recyclability.
Currently, Art. 21 of Italian Legislative Decree No 206 of 6 September 2005 (so-called “Consumer Code”) states that the main characteristics of the product to which misleading communications may refer are, among others, its availability, execution, composition, the method and date of manufacture, delivery, fitness for purpose, uses, quantity, the description, geographical or commercial origin, the results which can be expected from its use or the results and basic characteristics of tests and checks carried out on the product itself.
The Italian legislator will have time to amend the Consumer Code in accordance with the UE Directive until 27 March 2026.
