EmpCo as an opportunity to position oneself

In future, consumers are to be better protected than before against misleading sustainability claims. To enable consumers to make sustainable purchasing decisions, the legislator is calling for greater transparency from businesses. This means that sustainability claims must be clearly substantiated and formulated in a legally sound manner.  

Terms such as ‘climate-neutral’, ‘green’, ‘sustainable’ and ‘environmentally friendly’ may now only be used under strict conditions if companies wish to avoid the risk of receiving formal warnings.  

The requirements apply not only to text but to the entire corporate image – for example, images, seals, product names and other design elements. In addition to environmental claims, information on social aspects such as working conditions or fair production may also be relevant.  

The EU Directive directly regulates communication with consumers. Even companies that primarily serve business customers must comply with the requirements if their statements also reach end consumers or could influence their purchasing decisions. 

What will matter in future for environmental and sustainability claims  

An overview of the key changes:  

• Ban on general (blanket) environmental claims without evidence 

• Ban on self-created sustainability seals or labels without third-party verification 

• Ban on climate- or CO₂-neutral advertising based on offsetting 

• Ban on misleading claims about a company or product as a whole  

• No future promises (target statements) without a transparent implementation plan  

• No false claims regarding durability and reparability 

Even statutory standards require a sense of proportion in communication: what is already mandatory should not be highlighted as a special environmental or sustainability achievement. 

Our recommendation: View the EmpCo as an opportunity  

Even under the new requirements, the following still applies: sustainability communication should not fall silent, but rather be structured in a responsible and transparent manner. Sustainability communication is transformation communication: it takes time to take effect and requires a strong foundation of credibility, transparency, authenticity and continuity. 

The EmpCo offers an opportunity to further align sustainability communication with future needs, strengthen trust among customers and build long-term competitive advantages.

Three steps towards future-proof sustainability communication:  

1. Carry out a status analysis: Examine which environmental and sustainability claims are currently being used – and on which channels they appear. The crucial question is: Can these claims be clearly substantiated? The initial focus should be on the most important communication channels at product and corporate level. The sustainability report should also serve as a starting point for the review. 

2. Interdisciplinary workshop: The legal, sustainability, marketing and communications departments need to come together. This fosters a shared understanding of where the company stands with regard to its key environmental and sustainability claims. Together, they can identify areas of risk, derive recommendations for action and define clear responsibilities within the organisation. 

3. Refining sustainability positioning: Based on the analysis, the sustainability positioning should be further developed. Where are the verifiable areas for action? Which targets are realistically achievable? And what do concrete implementation plans look like? A refined positioning forms the basis for clear, credible and, in future, legally sound messages. Combined with practical storytelling, this results in a distinct sustainability narrative for the company.