What would be the products without certificates? Probably the same products, but apart from trusting the manufacturer, we would not have any certainty as to their quality, compliance of production technology or properties. The certificate is therefore a kind of guarantee for us, which ensures that the product meets the criteria for which we bought it. With this article, we would like to start a series about certificates related to green chemistry. The first is the EU Ecolabel award.
The EU Ecolabel is a European award, which is granted to products or services which are environmentally friendly. The award is proof of meeting high quality and health standards. The EU Ecolabel is a European program that was introduced in 1992 and can be joined voluntarily. It aims to promote strategies for introducing environmentally friendly products and services to the market. It encourages producers to produce less waste in particular, and also to produce less CO2 during the processes. It promotes products that are more durable, easy to repair and recycle.
The label is awarded on the basis of ecological criteria, which are published as decisions of the European Commission. A group of scientists and a group of experts, as well as representatives of various interested parties participate in the development of these criteria. These include competent entities from each Member State of the European Union as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Manufacturers, producers, service providers, importers, retailers and wholesalers also have their own voice in the work of the Commission. Similarly, environmental and consumer organizations.
The EU Ecolabel is awarded on the basis of Regulation No 66/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council (EC) of 25 November 2009 on the Ecolabel. This follows the decisions of the European Commission that include criteria for given groups of products or services.
The PCC Group also offers a whole range of products marked with the EU Ecolabel. This proves compliance with ecological requirements, which has been assessed by independent, competent bodies. Among them we can find EXOdet W, or EXOdis PC440 and EXOsoft PC35, which, thanks to their unique properties and technologies used during production, can be used for the production of ecological products certified with the Ecolabel mark.
The criteria on the basis of which the certificate is granted are reviewed every 3 to 5 years. They are verified in order to keep up with technological developments and meet current market and consumer needs.
More information about the EU Ecolabel can be found at: www.ec.europa.eu/environment/ecolabel.
