New rules for environmental marketing in Denmark: What you need to know

Aug 8

**On May 20, 2025, the Danish Parliament passed Law L147, amending the Marketing Act, the Consumer Contracts Act, and the Consumer Complaints Act. The aim is clear: to strengthen consumer protection and prevent misleading environmental claims in marketing. **These legal changes align with EU Directive (EU) 2024/825, which supports consumers’ role in the green transition. The new rules will take effect on September 27, 2026, and set higher standards for transparency, authenticity, and accountability in environmental marketing.

1. Stricter requirements for environmental claims

From September 2026, Section 5 of the Marketing Act will be expanded to cover specific environmental claims considered misleading. Businesses must support future-oriented environmental statements with:

Clear, realistic, and verifiable goals and plans
Ongoing monitoring by independent third parties

Examples of misleading claims:

Terms like “green,” “eco-friendly,” or “environmentally friendly” will be considered misleading unless backed by solid evidence such as a verified life cycle assessment (LCA).
The Danish Consumer Ombudsman emphasizes that “sustainable” is very hard to prove. To justify the term, a product must neither contribute to crossing planetary boundaries nor compromise future generations. With six of nine boundaries already exceeded, such claims are rarely realistic.

2. No more self-created “green” labels

As of the same date, businesses must be careful with self-made environmental labels or claims of environmental neutrality. These can only be used if:

They are certified by an officially recognized and independent third party

Examples of misleading labeling:

Homemade green logos or icons that aren’t verified by a third-party system
Claims of environmental benefits that aren’t backed by certification

3. More precise environmental messaging

The new rules promote a much more transparent and responsible approach to environmental communication:

Precision and relevance: Claims must be clear and easy for consumers to understand – and must not leave out essential information.
No exaggeration: For example, claiming a product is “green” when only a small part of its lifecycle is environmentally responsible will now be deemed misleading.

4. Tighter rules for CO₂ offset claims

As carbon-neutral marketing becomes more common, the law now requires robust documentation:

Businesses must prove the actual climate effect of their carbon offsets
Claims like “CO₂ neutral” or “net-zero emissions” must be supported by a plan for independent verification

Examples of misleading CO₂ claims:

Saying a product is carbon neutral without proving the offset has measurable climate impact
Relying on vague offsetting projects without third-party validation

5. Prohibition on emphasizing environmental claims through visual communication

To ensure that environmental claims are not misleading or exaggerated, the new legislation will also address how these claims are presented visually in marketing. From September 2026, it will be prohibited to highlight environmental claims through specific fonts, colors, or images that could create a false impression that a product is more environmentally friendly than it actually is.

Examples of misleading visual emphasis:

Using green colors or symbols associated with environmental friendliness without supporting evidence for the claim.
Using specific fonts or graphic elements that give the impression a product is more sustainable than it actually is.

The purpose of this rule is to prevent visual tactics from being used to unfairly influence consumer perception of a product’s environmental impact.

Conclusion

The upcoming rules, effective September 27, 2026, are a direct response to growing concerns about greenwashing and unclear environmental marketing. For businesses, it’s time to:

Review and update marketing strategies
Strengthen documentation and certification
Communicate sustainability efforts honestly and clearly

By staying ahead of these changes and using verified, transparent claims, companies can ensure compliance, build consumer trust – and contribute meaningfully to the green transition.

Read the Consumer Ombudsman’s guidelines on environmental marketing: Virksomheders miljømarkedsføring Forbrugerombudsmandens anbefalinger

References:

Lov om ændring af lov om markedsføring, lov om forbrugeraftaler og forbrugerklageloven (L147)

Camilla Feldschau Petersen

Sustainability & Compliance Manager

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Mirrored from https://www.metz.dk/csr-blog/new-rules-for-environmental-marketing-in-denmark - content only, not final design.