Understanding the ESPR: What EU Businesses Must Know

The EU’s Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) is reshaping sustainability requirements for nearly all products sold in the EU. The European Union is actively advocating for circularity to be the norm, encouraging sustainable product design, and providing detailed data transparency using Digital Product Passports. This ESPR Working Plan: What EU Businesses Must Know outlines what businesses need to do to stay compliant, which product categories are affected, and the deadlines they have to meet to keep their competitive edge in the EU market.

How ESPR Views The EU’s Role in Climate Change and Pollution

The European Union is responsible for some of the world's highest consumption of resources, with its residents using more than 2.9 planetary resources annually, significantly exceeding Earth's biocapacity. This consumption largely depends on the unsustainable extraction of minerals, fossil fuels, and biomass, which contributes to global environmental degradation.

Suboptimal Product Design is a major contributor to environmental problems, accounting for up to 80% of a product's environmental impact, largely due to the lack of inclusion of eco-design aspects, which ultimately leads to:

• Short product life cycles: Products with low durability come from "Planned obsolescence", when companies design products to fail prematurely, driving repeat purchases. This can involve rapid technological advancements, fragile materials, or manufactured stylistic outdatedness. The practice generates e-waste, burdens consumers, and raises ethical concerns about corporate responsibility and sustainability, promoting a "throwaway" culture despite boosting the economy.
• Increased waste: Increased levels of electronic-waste, plastic, and textile waste are harming the environment and human health in several ways: e-waste recycling is risky and exposes workers and the environment to hazardous substances; plastic is non-biodegradable, contaminates ecosystems with microplastics, enters the food chain, and its production contributes to climate change; and textile waste fills landfills, taking up valuable space, and releases methane as it decomposes. Without global actions, these waste streams pose serious threats to environmental and human health, and to the sustainable use of resources.

A significant portion of Europe's environmental footprint is outsourced. This occurs through the import of raw materials and manufactured goods from countries with less demanding environmental regulations, effectively shifting pollution burdens (such as mining waste, water consumption, and emissions) to other regions. The EU's contribution to global supply chain pollution is substantial, particularly in areas like deforestation (driven by imports of products like soy and palm oil), textile production, and the manufacturing of batteries and electronics.

Air pollution in European cities remains a significant concern for public health. Within the EU, prominent sectors such as heavy industry, transportation, and agriculture are responsible for substantial emissions, including: Greenhouse gases (GHGs), Particulate matter, NOx, and SOx, Persistent organic pollutants (POPs).

Key Goals of the ESPR: EU’s Roadmap to Sustainable Product Design

Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) goals are to transform the economy into a circular, sustainable, and competitive economy. The EU aims to  transform the consumption system in the EU which is the major cause of climate change and pollution.

The ESPR is part of a measure to reach the targets of the 2020 Circular Economy Action Plan. The Eco-design Regulation helps the EU become more circular and sustainable, aiming to hit environmental, climate, and energy efficiency targets by 2030, and doubling its circularity in material use. The ESPR has expanded the existing Eco-design Directive's reach, which used to only cover energy-related products.

Here are top 8 key points to be considered for ESPR Compliance:

• Extending Product Lifespan: Products should be designed for increased durability, ease of maintenance, reparability, upgradability, and recyclability.
• Establishing a Circular Economy: The objective is to minimise waste and optimise resource utilisation by prolonging product lifecycles and maximising material recovery.
• Broadening Eco-Design Regulations: These regulations will be universally applied to nearly all physical products, extending beyond energy-related items.
• Implementing Digital Product Passports: This comprehensive and easily accessible resource will offer standardised information about a product's composition, sustainability metrics, and lifecycle performance.
• Mitigating Environmental Impact and Carbon Footprint: Targets are being set for energy efficiency, carbon emissions, and the use of recycled materials.
• Prohibiting the Destruction of Unsold Goods: The disposal of unsold consumer items, particularly within high-impact industries, will be legally prohibited.
• Empowering Consumers and Businesses: By furnishing superior product information, consumers will be enabled to make more informed and sustainable purchasing decisions.
• Fostering Innovation and Equitable Competition: The plan aims to stimulate environmentally conscious innovations and ensure fair market competition within the EU.

ESPR Product Priority List: Key Products Targeted for Sustainability

According to the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) working plan, a list of products is targeted to introduce ecodesign requirements and energy labelling in the upcoming five years.

The new ESPR working plan 2025–2030 outlines key product groups that the commission has prioritised. These include four final products, two intermediate products, and two legal acts establishing horizontal requirements.

Energy-related products with eco-design requirements

• Household Washing Machines and Dishwashers (2026)
• Electric Motors and Variable Speed Drives (2028)
• Refrigerating Appliances (2028.)

Note: Information and communication technology (ICT) products and other electronics are not listed as final products but are affected by both horizontal measures and energy-related product requirements. In addition, sixteen energy-related product categories from the previous work plan (2022-2024) are renewed, including televisions, washing machines, motors, electric vehicle charger and portable electronic devices.

ESPR Enforcement and Civil Liability Risks

The Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) will be subject to both public enforcement and civil liability risks across the EU.

Civil Liability and Consumer Protection:

• Consumers have the right to pursue private enforcement if a product fails to meet Eco-design requirements.
• Manufacturers, importers, or other EU-based fulfilment service providers are liable for damages to consumers.
• Consumers can enforce claims collectively through representative actions, increasing civil liability risks for companies.
• The European Commission may expand the list of affected product groups, further increasing exposure for businesses.

Public Enforcement:

• National Integration: Each EU Member State must incorporate ESPR compliance checks into its national market surveillance strategy.
• Compliance Activities: These activities include physical inspections and laboratory tests to ensure adherence to regulations.
• Effectiveness Evaluation: Regular reporting and benchmarking will be used to assess the effectiveness of market surveillance efforts.
• European Commission Reporting: Every four years, the European Commission will issue a report detailing:
  1. Check results and non-compliance levels
  2. Penalties issued
  3. Indicative benchmarks
  4. Priority enforcement areas

Penalties for Non-Compliance:

• Member State Obligation: Member States are required to establish penalty rules for ESPR violations.
• Penalty Criteria: Penalties must be effective, proportionate, and dissuasive, taking into account:
  1. The nature, gravity, and duration of the infringement
  2. Economic benefits gained from non-compliance
  3. Environmental damage caused
• Minimum Penalties: These include fines and/or temporary exclusion from public procurement procedures.

Civil Liability and Consumer Protection:

• Private Enforcement: Consumers have the right to pursue private enforcement if a product fails to meet Eco-design requirements.
• Party Liability: Manufacturers, importers, or other EU-based fulfilment service providers are liable for damages incurred by consumers.
• Collective Actions: Consumers can collectively enforce claims through representative actions, thereby increasing civil liability risks for companies.

The European Commission may expand the list of affected product groups, which would further increase businesses' exposure.

ESPR Digital Product Passport: Transparency, Traceability, and Market Surveillance

As per the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), all products must have a passport, a Digital Product Passport that carries all data regarding the product’s materials to manufacturing to distribution. DPPs are to ensure that data provided are accessible with consent, showing the environmental performance, chances of repairability, the possible presence of concerning substances and the end-of-life or disposal information.

Under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), the Digital Product Passport (DPP) is designed to improve:

Transparency:

The idea of Digital Product Passport is generated to bring transparency into action. The DPP is built to provide data accuracy and accessibility regarding environmental and technical information such as product composition, carbon footprint, durability, energy use, and recyclability. This lets the consumers choose an eco-friendly product and the businesses can prove their authenticity about the product’s sustainability information.  

Traceability:

The Digital Product Passport (DPP) enables stakeholders to track a product's components and materials throughout its supply chain and lifecycle. This tracking facilitates the tracing of critical raw materials or recycled content's origin, production methods, and usage, thereby supporting circular economy objectives.

Market Surveillance:

By centralising product compliance data in digital form, the DPP helps national authorities and EU bodies monitor and enforce ESPR rules more efficiently. It enables quick checks for conformity, reduces fraud, and improves product recalls or environmental reporting.

The ESPR's free movement framework

The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) is all about making it easier for sustainable products to move freely around the EU. They're doing this by setting up consistent ecodesign rules and requiring a Digital Product Passport (DPP). The main idea is to avoid any roadblocks that may arise because of different national rules.

To keep the digital product passport adaptable and responsive to market changes and innovation, it should run on a decentralised data system. Businesses should be in charge of setting it up and managing it.

However, for smooth enforcement and oversight, national authorities and the Commission need direct access to a record of all unique product identifiers. To make this happen, the Commission should set up and manage a digital product passport registry for this data. When needed for enforcement, the Commission should also clarify what other digital product passport data should be stored in the registry.

Prepare Digital Product Passports by 2027 with DigiProd Pass

DigiProd Pass offers a streamlined platform to help businesses meet the EU's ESPR (Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation) requirements for Digital Product Passports. This interoperable system is carefully designed by the experts to ensure ESPR is compliant with and transparent to the stakeholders. It enables traceability across supply chains, integrates with existing systems, and ensures data is both secure and shareable .

DigiProd Pass supports compliance, builds consumer trust, and simplifies EU market access by making product data accessible to the concerned actors according to ESPR regulation.  DigiProd Pass’ real-world pilots, such as with Sourcebynet in Shanghai and BGMEA in Bangladesh, show they’re already helping industries get ESPR-ready.

Conclusion

The EU's new Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) is all about making products better for the planet with enhanced product longevity and recyclability.  And the Digital Product Passports (DPPs) help to keep things transparent and trustworthy aligning with circular economy EU regulation.

This whole effort is to limit the EU's ecological impact and build a greener future with clear rules, specific product goals, and thorough evaluations. This benefits everyone, from individuals to businesses, and significantly enhances the EU's leadership in sustainable innovation, ethical production, and climate action.

FAQs:

What is the ESPR Working Plan 2025–2030

‍Ans: The ESPR Working Plan 2025–2030 is the EU’s official strategy for implementing the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). This working plan aims to transform the linear economy into sustainable, circular, and energy-efficient by making businesses change their policy & product design. They require durable, reusable, repairable and traceable products with Digital Product Passports. The plan targets key product groups like textiles, furniture, tyres, and electronics to reduce environmental impact, promote resource efficiency, and support the EU Green Deal.‍

Which products are covered under ESPR?

‍Ans: The ESPR aims to improve product durability, repairability, reuseability, recyclability to make an eco-friendly consumption system. The prioritised products are clothes (by 2027), furniture (by 2028), tires (by 2027), and mattresses (by 2029). They're also considering materials like iron and steel (by 2026) and aluminum (by 2027). New regulations will focus on repairability (with a scoring system by 2027) and the use/recyclability of recycled electronic materials by 2029..

‍When do ESPR compliance deadlines start?

‍Ans: The ESPR compliance deadlines start after the first Working Plan is adopted by April 19, 2025, with some product-specific requirements beginning as early as 2026

Sources

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32024R1781&qid=1719580391746

‍https://ecomundo.eu/en/blog/ecodesign-labeling-energetics-sustainable-products

‍https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_25_1071

‍https://www.regulatory-compliance.eu/ecodesign-for-sustainable-products-regulation/

‍https://www.whitecase.com/insight-alert/eight-key-aspects-know-about-eu-ecodesign-sustainable-products-regulation

‍https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2023-0272_EN.html‍

https://sustainabilityservices.eurofins.com/news/espr-and-energy-labelling-working-plan/