Italy is among the first countries to implement the EU directive against greenwashing

This is the fourth in a series of articles about regulations and directives that are part of the European strategy for sustainable and circular textiles and that are radically changing the regulatory landscape for the fashion supply chain.

 

The uneven road of European directives against greenwashing

On March 24, 2026, Legislative Decree No. 30, approved by the Italian Parliament on February 20, entered into force. This is the measure through which Italy, among the first EU countries alongside Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, and Slovakia, transposes the European directive on greenwashing (Directive 2024/825, on “empowering consumers for the green transition by improving protection against unfair practices and information,” also known as the ECGT Directive) into national law.

 

The path of the European directives against greenwashing has been uneven. The directive adopted in February by the Italian Parliament had been definitively approved by the European Parliament and the Council in 2024, prior to the inauguration of the new European Commission, and was supposed to be accompanied by a second directive (the so-called GCD—Green Claims Directive). The second directive established stringent criteria regarding how the principles set forth in the first directive were to be verified and implemented. The more cautious stance on the “green” transition taken by the newly installed EU Commission and the opposition to the GCD expressed by some member states, including Italy, led to the GCD being suspended, with no plan for its resumption.

 

What are the obligations for businesses under the decree:

The decree introduces amendments to the Consumer Code. The amendments to the Code most relevant to the textile industry concern:

• The prohibition of generic environmental claims (e.g., “eco-friendly”) not supported by scientific evidence or certified sustainability labels. The decree does not provide a list of prohibited “generic environmental claims,” but refers to the directive, which, in the “recitals” section, lists as examples “‘environmentally friendly,’ ‘eco-compatible,’ ‘green,’ ‘nature-friendly,’ ‘ecological,’ ‘environmentally respectful,’ “climate-friendly,” “environmentally protective,” “low-carbon,” “energy-efficient,” “biodegradable,” “bio-based,” or similar claims that suggest or give the impression of superior environmental performance.” 
• The requirement for companies to inform consumers about the reparability of goods and the availability of spare parts, with the aim of extending the useful life of clothing.
• Restrictions on “carbon neutrality” claims, prohibiting them when based on emissions offsetting. Companies may still mention their investments in offset projects, but must do so transparently and separately from the product description. A prohibited claim is, for example: “This fabric is carbon neutral”; instead, they must state, in a communication separate from the product description: “We fund reforestation projects equivalent to our emissions.”
• The inclusion in the code of precise definitions for terms related to sustainability

 

What is the impact of the Green Claims Directive (GCD) freeze?

It should be noted that the suspension of the second directive (GCD) has eliminated certain additional obligations provided for by the GCD and which had been strongly contested by businesses, both due to the increased costs they would have entailed and, in many cases, due to the practical impossibility of achieving full compliance with the directive’s requirements, such as:

• The requirement for prior approval by an independent and accredited verifier, with the issuance of a “Certificate of Compliance with the Directive”, for every environmental claim made by a company regarding a product’s characteristics
• The requirement to base every environmental claim on the entire life cycle of a product, from raw materials to disposal.
• The requirement for very restrictive criteria for comparative claims

 

The transposition of the ECGT directive into national legislation marks a new phase for companies in the textile supply chain, which will now have clearer and more precise guidelines for environmental communication and claims. This is achieved without being subject to obligations that are impossible to meet, such as those previously required by the Green Claims Directive (GCD).