EU: CPC Network publishes Common Understanding on enforcement of “old stock situations” under the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EmpCo) Directive

On 30 June 2026, the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network - which is the network of national consumer protection authorities - published a Common Understanding addressing the enforcement treatment of “old stock” situations arising from the application of the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive (also known as the “ECGT" or “EmpCo” Directive). 

Developed through consultations between CPC authorities in the period January to June 2026, the document is a welcome and timely step towards a proportionate enforcement approach across the EU as the EmpCo Directive’s application date of 27 September 2026 approaches (see our client briefing and transposition tracker).

The CPC Common Understanding does not constitute a legally binding interpretation of the EmpCo Directive. However, it is a useful tool which sets out a non-exhaustive set of principles intended to provide a pragmatic framework for national competent authorities when addressing old stock situations in the early stages of application of the Directive. 

Definition and scope of old stock situations

The Common Understanding defines old stock situations as those involving products or packaging displaying environmental claims or sustainability labels that were manufactured, ordered, distributed, or placed on retailers’ shelves before the EmpCo Directive starts applying on 27 September 2026. These situations may arise because traders face genuine and specific transitional difficulties in adapting existing stock and packaging to the new EmpCo requirements within the time available.

The Common Understanding covers environmental claims and sustainability labels appearing on packaging or on the product itself, online or in other digital interfaces, and in advertising or other commercial communications linked to the product or trader.

The six key principles

The CPC Network sets out six principles to guide the enforcement treatment of old stock situations.

First, compliance without delay. Old stock situations do not exempt traders from complying with the new EmpCo rules. Traders must act without delay to bring their practices into compliance.

Second, phased enforcement. Authorities may adopt a phased approach where old stock situations give rise to genuine and specific transitional difficulties in the early stages of application. In determining enforcement priorities, national competent authorities may give particular consideration to environmental claims already addressed through enforcement action or guidelines under the existing UCPD rules, online claims, most harmful practices, non-packaging claims and marketing materials, products with shorter shelf-life or faster stock rotation, and products not expected to create genuine transitional difficulties. Authorities may also take into account the trader’s role, size, available resources, economic capacity, and good-faith compliance efforts.

Third, practical constraints. When determining the appropriate enforcement treatment, national competent authorities may take into account objective practical constraints, assessed on a case-by-case basis, including packaging cycles, stock volumes, prior production or purchase orders, supply-chain dependencies, the (long) shelf-life of a product, and the technical feasibility and proportionality of corrective measures.

Fourth, reasonable and proportionate efforts by traders towards full compliance. Depending on the circumstances, these could include: removing or correcting online claims, updating advertising and promotional materials, adapting future packaging and new orders, using stickers or removing labelling where appropriate and feasible, displaying corrective information at the point of sale, coordinating with suppliers and other actors in the supply chain, and keeping records showing the steps taken and their timing.

Fifth, no disproportionate or unreasonable measures. National competent authorities may refrain from requiring the destruction or recall of products as a measure to address genuine and specific transitional compliance issues for environmental claims or sustainability labels in old stock situations. A measure may be considered unreasonable and disproportionate if it would create disproportionate costs or unnecessary environmental harm. Interestingly, in Austria, the implementing legislation provided that all civil law claims relating to the EmpCo provisions on goods may only be brought where the goods concerned were placed on the market after 27 September 2026, on the basis that products with a low turnover rate should not need to be destroyed solely because their environmental claims or sustainability labels do not comply with the new requirements, with the legislature assuming that after three years no old goods will remain on the shelves.

Sixth, compliance-first enforcement approach. Overall, national competent authorities may investigate, prioritise, and sequence enforcement actions according to the gravity of infringements and the specific circumstances of each case. In justified old stock situations involving genuine and specific transitional issues, authorities may favour a compliance-oriented approach over a sanction-oriented one, particularly during the early stages of application. This may include awareness-raising on the new EmpCo rules, guidance and clarifications for traders, requests for information and evidence, and, where necessary, requests for corrective action with a reasonable timeline for adaptation and implementation.

Key takeaways

The CPC Common Understanding is a welcome development for businesses operating across the EU. It guides enforcement authorities on how to take a practical and reasonable enforcement approach. However, several important points should be borne in mind.

The Common Understanding does not create a safe harbour. The non-binding nature of the document means that national competent authorities retain full discretion to take enforcement action in specific cases. Traders must continue to prioritise achieving full compliance with the EmpCo rules by 27 September 2026, and should not interpret the phased enforcement principle as a licence to delay.

Traders should document their compliance efforts carefully. The Common Understanding expressly envisages that authorities will take into account good-faith efforts and the steps taken towards compliance. Maintaining records of internal compliance policies, corrective action, and the timing of those steps will be important in any engagement with a national competent authority.

Online claims merit particular attention. The Common Understanding singles out online environmental claims as not facing the same operational constraints as offline claims. Traders should therefore prioritise reviewing and, where necessary, correcting online-facing claims and marketing materials ahead of the application deadline.

Finally, whilst the Common Understanding envisages that product destruction or recall will not ordinarily be required to address old stock issues where such measures are considered unreasonable and disproportionate, this remains a matter for authorities to assess on a case-by-case basis. Traders with large volumes of affected stock should seek legal advice on their specific position.

Further reading 

For more information on the EmpCo Directive, see our materials:

• Client alert: The new EU Directive on Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition
• EmpCo Transposition Tracker
• Webinar recording: Green claims under scrutiny: What the EU’s Directive on Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition means for businesses
• Webinar recording: financial services focus on the EU's Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive
• EU Directive on Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition: Commission updates its FAQs
• Greenwashing materials