EU green claims checker: is your eco-friendly copy now illegal? Free, private

Is your “eco-friendly” copy now illegal in the EU?

Since 27 September 2026 the EU Empowering Consumers Directive (2024/825) bans vague environmental words, product-level “carbon neutral” claims and home-made sustainability badges. Paste your product page, ad or packaging text and see every phrase it targets, the rule behind it and what to write instead.

A keyword scan of English, German, French, Spanish, Italian and Dutch copy. Rule points were written from memory of the published text. It cannot clear your copy and is not legal advice.

Marketing copy to scan Reference date (blank = today)

Paste your copy, then click Scan my copy.

What it looks for, and what it leaves to you

Carbon or climate neutral about a product (Annex I 4c): banned outright when it rests on offsetting.
Generic claims (4a): “eco-friendly”, “green”, “sustainable”, “climate friendly”, “biodegradable” need recognised excellent environmental performance, or the specific reason on the same medium.
Sustainability labels (2a): only certification-scheme or public-authority labels.
Whole-product claims (4b), legal-minimum claims (10a) and future targets: flagged for a qualifier, a deleted claim or a verified plan.
Not decided: whether your evidence exists, images and logos, durability and repairability claims, national transposition and penalties, the position for stock placed on the market before 27 September 2026, and any later Green Claims rules.

Common questions

Can I still say my product is eco-friendly in the EU?

Only if you can show recognised excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim, such as an official EU Ecolabel, or if the specific reason is stated clearly and prominently on the same medium. A bare “eco-friendly”, “green” or “sustainable” is banned from 27 September 2026.

Can I call a product carbon neutral if I buy offsets?

No. Product-level climate-neutral, carbon-neutral or reduced-impact claims based on offsetting are banned outright. Company-level offset spending can be described separately, without claiming the product's own impact is neutral.

Can I use my own sustainability badge or score?

Only if it is based on a certification scheme or was set up by a public authority. A leaf logo or eco score you created and awarded yourself is a banned sustainability label.

What about “net zero by 2030” promises?

A future-performance claim is misleading unless it rests on a detailed, realistic plan with measurable time-bound targets, verified regularly by an independent third-party expert whose findings are available to consumers.

Does this tool clear my copy?

No. It is a keyword scan that points at wording the Directive targets. It cannot see images or logos and cannot know whether your evidence exists.

Is my text uploaded anywhere?

No. Everything is scanned in your browser and nothing is sent; a test in the code asserts there are no network calls.