Greenwashing: Italy aligns with the EU legal framework

The Italian legislative decree ("Greenwashing Decree") fits into the broader EU strategy to tackle unfair commercial practices, including misleading advertising, that exploit sustainability narratives. At EU level, Directive (EU) 2024/825 aims to prohibit generic, unverifiable environmental claims and non-verifiable sustainability labels.

The Greenwashing Decree, approved in preliminary form by the Council of Ministers on 5 November 2025, implements these principles at national level explicitly targeting "environmental claims" i.e. any message (verbal, written, visual, symbolic) made by businesses about the positive, reduced, or neutral environmental impact of their products, services, or the company itself. Official communications confirm that the measure is designed to stop misleading "green" messages, protect genuinely sustainable Italian businesses and provide consumers with reliable, comparable information. For the time being, the text has been approved by the Government and will be fully effective once the Greenwashing Decree is finalised and published in the Official Gazzette, in line with the EU transposition deadlines (i.e. by March 27, 2026). The provisions of the Greenwashing Decree will then apply to companies from September 27, 2026.

Scope and key definitions

The Greenwashing Decree introduces a clear, structured system for classifying sustainability communication, closely mirroring Directive 2024/825. It defines, among others:

• Sustainability label: any voluntary trust mark, quality mark or equivalent that aims to distinguish and promote a product, a process or an undertaking with reference to its environmental or social characteristics, or both - these labels are allowed only if based on certification schemes or established by public authorities (e.g. the "Made Green in Italy" label).
• Environmental claim: any message or representation, in any form (e.g. verbal, written, visual or symbolic) that states or implies a positive or zero impact on the environment, reduced harm, or improved sustainability profile of a product, brand or trader.
• Generic environmental claim: any environmental claim made in writing or orally, including through audiovisual media, that is not included on a sustainability label and whose clarification is not provided in clear and prominent specification on the same medium.
• Certification scheme: a third-party verification system which certifies that a product, a process or business complies with certain requirements, that allows the use of a corresponding sustainability label and whose conditions, including the requirements, are accessible to the public and meet several criteria.

These definitions are critical: once codified, they become the legal filter through which Italian authorities assess whether a claim (including one conveyed by a logo, label, packaging design element, tagline, or brand name) is clear, specific, verifiable and not misleading.

Prohibited greenwashing practices, information duties and sanctions

Building on the updated EU "blacklist" of unfair practices, the Greenwashing Decree enlarges the category of automatically unlawful conduct, targeting:

• Non-certified sustainability labels, i.e. displaying a sustainability label not grounded in transparent, third-party verified certification schemes or not established by public authorities.
• Generic and vague green claims such as "environmentally friendly", "eco-friendly", "green", "climate positive" or "zero impact" when traders cannot demonstrate recognised excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim.
• Claims related to the entire product when concerning only a certain aspect, e.g. presenting an entire brand or product line as sustainable when only a single line, component or phase meets higher standards.
• Offset-based neutrality claims, where products are marketed as "carbon neutral", "climate neutral", "Co2 neutral certified" or similar solely by purchasing offsets.

By regulating these prohibitions directly under the law, authorities no longer need to assess their nature case-by-case: these practices are deemed unfair per se once the factual conditions are met.

On a different note, the Greenwashing Decree emphasises evidence and transparency:

• traders who highlight environmental or social attributes must hold accessible, up-to-date evidence (data, methodologies, certifications) supporting each claim.
• environmental comparisons between products must be based on objective, verifiable and regularly updated criteria, clearly disclosed to consumers.

These obligations are particularly relevant for e-commerce, marketplaces and sectors (fashion, food, cosmetics, electronics, automotive) where sustainability language and labels are pervasive and often included into trademarks, packaging layouts and graphics, labels and other relevant IP assets.

Take-aways for businesses

For businesses operating in Italy, the Greenwashing Decree - once in force – will raise the evidentiary bar for every sustainability claim made. Environmental/ESG, marketing, legal and product teams will need to align on:

• internal verification processes for all green claims;
• strict assessing of any sustainability labels, badges and trust marks (including co-branding with third parties);
• documentation of climate and environmental commitments with concrete, monitored implementation plans;
• updates of templates, packaging, websites and influencer/advertising guidelines, especially where sustainability messaging is included into trademarks, taglines, graphic devices, pack designs or product naming.

Conclusion

The Greenwashing Decree marks a structural shift from aspirational sustainability storytelling to accountable, evidence-based communication. By transposing Directive (EU) 2024/825, Italy aims to combat greenwashing while rewarding genuinely sustainable operators and enhancing consumer trust. Business should thus redesign their environmental claims and ensure to treat every "green" message (including those featured in trademarks, labels, slogan, packaging designs and certification badges) as both IP assets and regulated claims that must stand up to regulatory and public examination.

Authored by Maria Luigia Franceschelli and Giulia Ghidini.