EU Ecolabel Statistics: Proposal on the way forward CB Forum Meeting 11 March 2014, Brussels DG ENVIRONMENT EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Background Last agreed methodology from 2008 "On counting EU Ecolabel products and licences“ needs update and further specification and clarification. 2

Objective Need to ensure statistics on the EU Ecolabel as reliable as possible Common agreement on the way to count products and licences is necessary to get trustworthy data 3

Task Force A Task Force (TF), constituted by 6 CBs (Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and United Kingdom) and DG ENV, was created in June 2013 to work out an harmonized approach to collect and report statistical information on licences/products awarded with the EU Ecolabel 4

Main issues discussed by the TF Procedure to count EU Ecolabel licences Procedure to count EU Ecolabel products Possibility of using EAN codes as "reference internal codes" in order to facilitate counting the EU Ecolabel products

Counting EU Ecolabel licences Approach 1 1 EU Ecolabel licence for 1 product group for 1 producer (independently of the number of production sites) If a new application for the same product group and producer is made, the same licence number shall be issued (but the number of products increases) Approach 2 For each new application (the same producer or the same PG) or for each modification of the product with impact on the applicable EU Ecolabel criteria, a new licence number is issued

Counting EU Ecolabel licences Special circumstance: For the same product (from the formulation/composition, design, etc. point of view), a retailer can request a new EU Ecolabel licence in order to offer an EU Ecolabel product of its own brand. In this case, a separate application needs to be presented.

Main features used by EU Ecolabel CBs to count products Volume/size Colour Shape/design/model Packaging design Commercial name/brand Other features

Counting EU Ecolabel products Summary of the most common (identified) ways to count products (though not harmonized): 2 different volumes/sizes of the same product = 2 products 2 different colours of the same product = 2 products 2 different packaging designs (colour, shape) = 2 products 2 different commercial / brand names of the same product = 2 products 2 different formulations (e.g. a different perfume in detergents, i.e. even a very minor change in the formulation) = 2 products

Counting EU Ecolabel products Principles to be applied for all products: If the product is marketed under two or more different commercial names/brands, then each of them is counted as a separate product. When the same product is sold with slightly different names (due to e.g. translation to “x” national languages of the country where the product is placed on the market), then ”x” products shall be reported. When the same product is sold with the same name, but the information given on the label is translated into “x” national languages of the country where the product is placed on the market, only 1 product shall be reported.

Features counted Product Groups Volume/Size Packaging Design Commercial name/brand Soaps, shampoos and hair conditioners All-purpose cleaners Detergents for dishwashers Industrial and institutional automatic dishwasher Detergents Hand dishwashing detergents Laundry detergents Industrial and institutional laundry detergents 2 different volumes of 2 fragrances shall be counted as 4 products. 100 and 200 gr of Yasmin and Lemon soap shall be counted as 4 products. 11

Commercial name/brand Growing media Soil improvers Lubricants Features counted Product Groups Volume/Size Commercial name/brand Growing media Soil improvers Lubricants 2 different volumes with 2 different brand names shall be counted as 4 products. Features counted Product Groups Commercial name/brand Colour Shape/design/model Footwear Women and Children shoes in 2 different colours shall be counted as 4 products. 2 different models in 2 different colours shall be counted as 4 products. 12

Features counted Product Groups Volume/Size Colour Commercial name/brand Copying and graphic paper Tissue paper Paints and varnishes Wooden floor coverings Hard coverings Newsprint paper 1 and 5 L paint cans, both available in light and dark blue and black shall be counted as 6 products. 2 different newsprint paper sizes in 2 colours in 2 different finishes (e.g. matt and glossy) shall be counted as 8 products. 13

Features counted Product Groups Volume/Size Colour Shape/design/model Commercial name/brand Textile floor coverings Wooden furniture Textiles Personal computers Notebook computers Televisions Imaging equipment Converted paper (not yet adopted) Computers: 2 different screen sizes with 2 different processors shall be counted as 4 products. Imaging equipment: same model, one with manual and other with automatic duplex unit in 2 different colours shall be counted as 4 products. Textiles: 2 different sizes, 2 different colours and 2 different designs shall be counted as 8 products. 14

Features counted Product Groups Shape/design/model Commercial name/brand Sanitary Tapware Flushing toilets and urinals Light sources Heat pumps 2 taps with 2 different flow rates shall be counted as 4 products. 2 toilets with 2 different flush rates shall be counted as 4 products. 2 bulbs with 2 different luminous flux shall be counted as 2 products. 2 heat pumps with 2 different maximum heating capacity shall be counted as 2 products. 15

Features counted Product Groups Shape/design/model Commercial name/brand Volume/size Bed mattresses 1 mattress model of 2 different sizes shall be counted as 2 products. 16

Features counted Product Groups Commercial name/brand Campsite services Tourist accommodation services Printed paper Water-based heaters (not yet adopted) Campsite services and Tourist accommodation services: Each service is defined by its physical location. Each accommodation needs to be separately counted, even if they are registered under one EU Ecolabel license number (e.g. as a part of a hotel chain). 2 water-based heaters with 2 different rated heat output shall be counted as 2 products. 17

Counting EU Ecolabel products Special circumstance: When a retailer applies for the EU Ecolabel in respect of a product already holding an EU Ecolabel licence, but with another commercial name/brand, then those products will be counted separately. 18

Counting EU Ecolabel products Future possibilities: Shall the turnover of EU Ecolabel products be re-introduced as a statistical parameter? The Task Force agreed that having access to this kind of information and later aggregating this at the EU and national level would be a very useful measure on how successful the EU Ecolabel is. 19

Future possibilities: Could the EAN code be adopted as “internal reference code”? In general, the Task Force was in favour of the adoption of the internationally used EAN code as an “internal reference code”. EAN code is the "bar code", a system of encoding products, which has a wide international application and which could provide the potential to measure the penetration of EU Ecolabel products. An Excel file comprising information on EU Ecolabel product groups definition and scope was shared with GS1, in order to understand its correspondence to the categories of products used in the GS1 system. Feedback was not yet received.

Conclusion: Feedback on the proposal presented to count EU Ecolabel licences and products is requested by 28 March 2014. By 11 April 2014, the Commission will send the final document presenting the methodology on how to count EU Ecolabel licences and products. Next report exercise to the EU Ecolabel Helpdesk (June 2014), shall be done in accordance with the methodology agreed. EU Ecolabel statistics will be uploaded on the website, only if the agreed methodology is implemented. 21

Thank you for your attention 22 22