Your ​“Sustainable” label is illegal in 185 days. Is your fashion company ready for this?

You’ve spent years building a brand or store around genuine sustainability. You source carefully, tell your story honestly, and try to do better than the industry average. And now a new EU law says that the way you’ve been communicating all of that might not be legal anymore.

That’s not a scare tactic. That’s the reality of Directive (EU) 2024/825, also known as the EmpCo Directive (Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition). It applies to every fashion retailer and brand selling to EU consumers, whether you’re a two-person label in Ghent or a growing multi-brand store in Amsterdam.

The ultimate deadline to avoid fines is 27 September 2026. And it’s closer than it looks. The good news: if you are a COSH! member, you do not have to navigate this alone.

What is EmpCo, and how does it affect your business?

EmpCo (Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition) is an EU directive that amends two existing laws: the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD) and the Consumer Rights Directive (CRD). It was adopted by the EU Council on 20 February 2024 and published as Directive (EU) 2024/825 in the Official Journal on 6 March 2024. (You can read the full legal text here.) 

What does EmpCo mean?

The Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition legislation came into creation to help protect consumers from vague & misleading communications.

In plain words: EmpCo tightens the rules around environmental and sustainability claims. It defines what counts as greenwashing, not just the obvious lies, but also the vague, unverifiable, or misleading language that has become standard in fashion marketing.

Terms like ​“eco-friendly,” ​“sustainable,” ​“conscious,” ​“green,” or ​“climate-neutral” are now legally prohibited if you cannot back them up with concrete, verifiable evidence. Not because the EU is certain you’re being dishonest, but because these terms have no clear, singular meaning to a consumer trying to make an informed choice.

What exactly is now prohibited?

The directive introduces a list of new ​“per se” violations: practices that are always considered unfair, regardless of intent. For fashion retailers and brands, the most relevant ones are:

• Unsubstantiated general environmental claims. 
  Saying a product or brand is ​“eco-friendly,” ​“sustainable,” or ​“green” without specific, evidence-based proof is now prohibited. The claim must relate to a concrete environmental benefit that can be verified.
• CO₂ offset neutrality claims. 
  Calling a product ​“climate-neutral” or ​“carbon-neutral” based purely on offsetting initiatives such as planting trees, buying carbon credits,… is explicitly banned. Offsetting can be mentioned as a practice, but it cannot be used to claim neutrality.
• Private sustainability labels without independent verification. 
  If you’ve created your own sustainability badge, seal, or icon without independent third-party certification from an accredited body, the use of that label is now illegal.
• Future sustainability claims without a concrete, verified plan. 
  Saying ​“by 2030, we’ll be fully circular” is fine only if you have a documented, measurable, publicly accessible roadmap that has already started. A vague ambition is not a compliant claim.
• Legal requirements presented as sustainability benefits. 
  You cannot claim ​“REACH-compliant chemicals” or ​“no animal testing” as environmental achievements. These are legal obligations for every business, not competitive advantages of your products.

How COSH! helps you communicate your sustainability story the right way.

Compliance doesn’t have to mean hiring a lawyer or pausing your marketing. It means knowing what to check, and having the right tools to check it. These are the exclusive compliance tools and services COSH! members have access to:

• Step-by-step compliance checklists for stores and brands. 
  Each checklist walks you through your live communications: website, product pages, labels, and social media. It tells you what to look for, what to fix, and how to rewrite it in a way that is both legally sound and compelling. No legal jargon. Clear, practical steps you can act on today.
• The COSH! Green Claims Checker. 
  This is a dedicated AI tool built on Claude, that you can add directly to your own Claude account. Upload it once and you can conveniently scan any page, any text, any product description against the EmpCo framework whenever you need to. It helps you adapt your language and vocabulary to the framework by flagging problematic claims, explaining why they are an issue, and suggesting compliant alternatives.
• Ongoing legislative updates delivered to your inbox. 
  As Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany each publish their national implementations, we track the changes and update our tools and checklists accordingly. You do not have to monitor three legislative processes in three languages to stay up to date. We do that for you, and deliver the practical clarification straight to your inbox.
• A community of peers who are navigating the same questions and challenges. 
  Whether you are just starting to audit your website or you are a scaling brand rethinking your entire ESG communication strategy, there are COSH! members walking along the same path. That kind of peer knowledge, grounded, specific, and honest, is not something you find in a regulation document. Get in touch with like-minded entrepreneurs at COSH! Events, community meet-ups or through online channels.

All of this is included in your COSH! membership, no add-ons, no extra fees. Your toolkit is waiting.

Not a member yet, but curious what this looks like in practice? We are happy to walk you through it. Book a free intro call to get a demo of how it works on a real page from your brand’s or store’s website.

What if my brand doesn’t comply with EmpCo?

The EmpCo deadline is not a distant regulatory abstraction. It is a practical, enforceable change to how you are allowed to talk about your business. Penalties (up to 4% of your annual revenue) under national unfair commercial practices laws vary by country but can include fines, injunctions, and reputational damage from public enforcement actions.

The brands and stores that will handle this change in the legal landscape most smoothly are the ones who start reflecting and adapting now: review what you say, build the evidence to support it, and communicate more clearly and specifically.

Fact & figures: A country-by-country breakdown

EU member states must transpose EmpCo into national law by 27 March 2026. The rules must apply from 27 September 2026.

Here is where things stand for Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany:

1. Germany is ahead of the curve. The country is implementing EmpCo through the Drittes Gesetz zur Änderung des UWG (Third Act Amending the Act Against Unfair Competition). The Bundestag adopted the proposal on 19 December 2025, and the Bundesrat sat on 30 January 2026. Publication is expected shortly. 
   The first provisions, particularly around misleading future claims, come into force on 19 June 2026. The full package follows on 27 September 2026. If you sell into Germany, the clock is already ticking.
2. The Netherlands published its implementation proposal (Implementatie richtlijn 2024/825) on 15 December 2025. It is currently progressing through the House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer). Dutch authorities, particularly the ACM (Authority for Consumers and Markets), have already been actively enforcing green claims under existing laws and regulations, so the pathway is established.
3. Belgium has not yet published its transposition plan. However, Belgium already prohibits misleading environmental claims under Book VI of the Belgian Code of Economic Law. Read more about the impact on the local retail landscape in Belgium. Once transposed, EmpCo will harmonise and tighten these rules further, specifically around which terms need substantiation and which labels are acceptable. We recommend working ahead of the official deadline, to ensure your company is compliant. Waiting for the Belgian implementation to start preparing is not a strategy.

What does compliant communication actually look like?

Compliant green claims are specific, scoped, and substantiated. A few practical examples:

Instead of ​“We use sustainable packaging” → ​“Our packaging is made from 80% recycled cardboard. The plastic handle is not yet recyclable, we are working with our supplier to replace it by Q3 2026.”

Instead of ​“We are a climate-neutral brand” → ​“We have reduced our direct emissions by 42% since 2020 and offset the remainder through [certified scheme]. We do not claim full climate neutrality, as offsetting does not equal zero emissions.”

Instead of ​“We produce ethically” → ​“All our garments are produced in our own atelier in Lisbon, where workers are paid above the national living wage and conditions are audited annually by [recognised third-party body].”

The structure is easy to apply: name the specific claim, explain the evidence and acknowledge the limitations.

Questions and answers

What is the EmpCo Directive and when does it apply to my business? 

The EmpCo Directive (EU) 2024/825 tightens the rules around environmental and sustainability claims in commercial communications. EU member states must implement it by 27 March 2026, and the rules apply to all businesses from 27 September 2026. It affects any brand or retailer making sustainability claims to EU consumers, regardless of company size.

Does EmpCo apply to small fashion brands and independent stores? 

Yes. EmpCo applies to any business making commercial communications to EU consumers, regardless of size or turnover. If you have a physical store, website, webshop, or publish marketing materials that include sustainability claims, you are in scope.

Which specific phrases are now illegal under EmpCo? 

Broad, unsubstantiated terms like ​“eco-friendly,” ​“sustainable,” ​“green,” ​“conscious,” and ​“climate-neutral” are prohibited unless backed by a full, verifiable evidence base covering the specific product or aspect being claimed. The law also bans private sustainability labels without independent certification, and future claims without a concrete, publicly accessible plan.

How can COSH! help me make my sustainability communications EmpCo-compliant?

COSH! offers a Green Claims Checker tool that scans your website copy against the EmpCo framework, an easy-to-use checklist, expert review and rewriting support, and ongoing updated guidance as national implementations are published. Members also benefit from a community of peers navigating the same questions. You can book a meeting to explore membership options here.