Consumers are actively seeking products and companies with clear, transparent and verified information on climate commitments, with 66% saying carbon footprint labelling on products is good for consumer choice. Regulators are setting the ground rules for green claims, including in the EU where legislation aimed at empowering consumers will be implemented on 27 March ahead of enforcement starting from 27 September 2026.
In this climate-conscious marketplace, the Carbon Trust’s new ‘Marketer’s guide to carbon footprint labelling’ urges brands to use carbon footprint labelling to build consumer trust, set themselves apart from competitors and engage audiences. Drawing on international consumer research and insights from leading brands, the guide outlines the value of integrating carbon footprint labelling into product packaging, communications and campaigns.
Why clear communication matters
The guide encourages brands and their marketing teams to focus on saying things clearly, using evidence that can stand up to scrutiny.
Carbon footprint labels give marketers a practical way to make detailed climate work easier to understand at the point of purchase, with 60% of consumers more likely to trust a product with a carbon footprint label than an unlabelled product. This can translate into improved sales too, as shown by Amazon, where products featuring green claims on its Climate Pledge Friendly programme experienced an average 12% sales uplift within the first year.
Julia Nicoara, Marketing and Communications Director at the Carbon Trust said
“As scrutiny of environmental claims increases, it can be tempting for organisations to pull back from talking about sustainability,
“But consumers still want clear, trustworthy information, and that transparency can influence purchasing decisions. Carbon footprint labelling helps brands communicate real climate action in a way people recognise and trust, while reducing the risks associated with unclear claims.”
Organisations are clear on the need to act on climate, but less certain about how to communicate real progress without risking accusations of greenwashing. At the same time, concern about getting claims wrong is contributing to a rise in ‘greenhushing’ — where brands choose to say less or nothing at all about sustainability.
The guide encourages companies to say more, not less about their climate progress, outlining some of the advantages of making carbon footprint labels a visible brand asset:
- Enhanced brand perception and market positioning
- Clearer internal and external story telling
- Informed decision‑making and comparison for consumers
- Identifying cost efficiencies
- Clear communication of environmental achievements without over‑claiming
- Strengthening brand trust and consistency across packaging, digital channels and campaigns.
Regulations reinforce importance of evidence-based climate communications
For marketers, tightening green claims regulations reinforces the importance of evidence-based sustainability communications that can be understood and defended.
In the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority’s Green Claims Code sets clear expectations for environmental claims to be accurate, clear and supported by evidence. While the EU’s Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (ECGT) Directive will be fully applied from 27 September 2026. This strengthens consumer protection rules by banning vague or generic green claims unless backed by clear, verifiable evidence and restricting the use of sustainability labels to those supported by recognised, transparent verification schemes.
Under the ECGT Directive, green claims and environmental labels are subject to stricter rules on credibility, transparency and verification. From September 2026, brands will need to rely on recognised verification schemes to support consumer‑facing sustainability labels, creating the opportunity to communicate climate action with confidence.
The Carbon Trust carbon footprint labelling expertise
The Carbon Trust continues to evolve and improve its label claims, so they remain credible, relevant and compliant in a changing regulatory and consumer landscape. Since launching the world’s first product carbon footprint label in 2007, the global consultancy has verified more than 37,000 products across 40 countries to become the most recognised carbon footprint globally by consumers.
Its label portfolio is supported by close monitoring of regulatory developments in the green claims space to ensure continued alignment as rules evolve. The Carbon Trust also has a dedicated marketing and technical team for carbon footprint labelling, undertaking frequent consumer research and focus groups to maintain a strong understanding of consumer expectations around carbon footprint labelling.