Larger retailers will no longer be allowed to destroy unsold clothing in the EU in the future. Negotiators from the European Parliament and the EU states also agreed on Tuesday night that the EU Commission can extend the ban to other products in the future, the two negotiating sides announced. According to the information, there are exceptions for small companies and a transition period of six years for medium-sized companies. In principle, the ban should be applied two years after the regulation comes into force.
Parliament and EU states still have to officially approve the agreement, but this is considered a formality. The background to the new ban is a proposal from the EU Commission from March 2022 on the so-called Ecodesign Regulation. This means that products last longer, are easier to reuse, repair and recycle and use fewer resources such as energy and water.
It has not yet been determined in detail which specific additional requirements will apply to individual products. The agreement states that the EU Commission can issue legally binding requirements to make goods such as furniture, tires, detergents, paints or chemicals more environmentally friendly. But numerous raw materials such as iron, steel and aluminum will also be regulated accordingly in the future. Exceptions are made for cars or military products, for example.
The chairwoman of the Internal Market Committee in the EU Parliament, Anna Cavazzini (Greens), emphasized that there will also be a repair index in the future. This would enable consumers to see when purchasing how easily a product can be repaired. (dpa)