The products we make and use have a big effect on the environment and when you look at consumption across the EU, it is a key contributor to both climate change and pollution. This is why the Ecodesign law (Ecodesign for Sustainable Product Regulation/ESPR) came into force in 2024.

As an incredibly important piece of the EU's sustainability puzzle, the Ecodesign law is part of a larger set of measures. It directly supports the ambitions of the Circular Economy Action Plan that was laid out by the EU in 2020. The core of this plan is to build a circular economy where products are made from sustainable or recycled materials.

Together with the ecodesign requirements set, they should also be easily reused, repaired or recycled, creating minimal waste and reducing the carbon footprint. As an example of an Ecodesign requirement, products including batteries will, in 2027, be required to have batteries that can be easily removed and replaced — both to support repairability and to improve recycling.

To trace the origins of the materials, a main part of this Ecodesign law is the Digital Product Passport where product information needs to be included such as:

• Where and who made the product
• What materials are included
• The environmental footprint
• How the product can be repaired or recycled

With this law (and the included DPP), the EU will make major steps towards its environmental and climate goals, including doubling its circularity rate of material use and reaching its energy efficiency targets by 2030. Recycling creates more valuable raw materials for producing new products, but knowing their full journey is key.

This law highlights the importance of traceability, ensuring that the recycled materials used are genuinely from reliable, trustworthy sources.

2026–2027: First product groups will be selected and get specific rules on what needs to be reported — textile, small electronics and toys.

These products were picked for an earlier start because of the massive amount of waste they generate and how difficult they can be to recycle. For example, tiny parts glued together in small electronics make them a recycling nightmare. And simply dumping textiles creates major environmental problems.

Between 2028 and 2030, the DPP requirement will expand to include up to 30 product categories, such as construction materials, furniture, tyres, electronics, and the law envisions that all products sold in the EU will eventually require a Digital Product Passport, likely by 2030

Want to read more about the details? You can find more information here!