中文Starting September 27, 2026, sustainability claims in the European Union will no longer be a matter of marketing discretion. The Empowerment of Consumers Directive (EU/2024/825), known as EmpCo, tightens the requirements regarding inaccurate or vague claims about environmental and climate protection, as well as sustainability. For printing companies, this means that statements like “we are a green printing company” or “we use only sustainable materials” could carry legal consequences if they cannot be sufficiently substantiated. In Germany, the Unfair Competition Act has already adopted these requirements in an amendment passed in February 2026.
What Changes Under EmpCo
The EmpCo directive targets the gap between environmental marketing and environmental reality that has allowed vague green claims to proliferate without accountability. Under the new rules, sustainability claims must be specific, verifiable, and supported by evidence that covers the entire relevant life cycle of the product or service in question. Generic terms like “eco-friendly,” “green,” or “sustainable” — when used without qualification — will face heightened scrutiny and potential enforcement action.
For print service providers, the substrate is the variable that is easiest to adjust. Switching from PVC to PET film, for example, requires some machine setting adjustments but is far simpler than installing new hardware or changing the entire workflow. This makes substrate selection the most immediate area where EmpCo compliance will affect daily operations. A printer that claims to use “sustainable materials” must now be prepared to document what makes those materials sustainable — their carbon footprint, recyclability, content of renewable raw materials, and end-of-life pathway.
The PVC Dilemma in Wide-Format Printing
PVC remains the dominant material for outdoor large-format applications such as banners, vehicle wraps, and building signage. It is inexpensive, durable, printable, and conformable — properties that alternatives struggle to match at equivalent cost. But PVC carries an environmental burden that includes chlorine content, phthalate plasticizers in many formulations, and challenging end-of-life disposal. Under EmpCo, a printer who markets PVC-based signage as “sustainable” without rigorous qualification invites regulatory risk.
The industry has responded with a growing range of PVC-free alternatives. Polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) films designed specifically for digital printing have entered the market from suppliers including Orafol, Avery Dennison, Grafityp, Folex, and Hexis. For vehicle wrapping, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) and PU-based films from suppliers like 3M (Envision line) and Arlon (Vital line) offer PVC-free options. Soft signage printed on polyester textiles using sublimation represents another pathway — the fabrics are lighter, easier to transport, and more reusable than solid PVC tarpaulins.
Synthetic Papers and Rigid Substrates
The rigid substrate market is also shifting. Lightweight PVC foam panels such as Forex have long been the default for direct printing on rigid materials, but alternatives are gaining ground. Aluminum composite panels with PE cores contain no PVC, though aluminum production is energy-intensive. Hollow-core polypropylene sheets are PVC-free, ultralight, weatherproof, and recyclable by material type. Honeycomb and textured paper panels made from 100 percent cellulose offer an entirely renewable option for indoor and short-term outdoor applications.
For print service providers, the EmpCo deadline represents both a compliance challenge and a market opportunity. Companies that invest now in understanding the environmental characteristics of their substrates — and in documenting those characteristics with credible third-party certifications — will be positioned to make specific, verifiable sustainability claims that competitors relying on vague green language cannot match. In a market where brand owners are increasingly required to report on their supply chain’s environmental performance, the printer who can provide reliable environmental data about their materials and processes gains a competitive advantage that extends well beyond regulatory compliance.
The practical steps for a print service provider preparing for EmpCo compliance begin with a thorough audit of current environmental claims. Every statement made on a website, in a proposal, on a product label, or in sales collateral should be reviewed for specificity and substantiation. “We print on recycled paper” needs to specify the percentage of post-consumer recycled content and the certification standard. “Our inks are eco-friendly” needs to specify what makes them eco-friendly — VOC content, renewable raw material percentage, or biodegradability — and provide the supporting test data or certification.
Supplier relationships become critical under EmpCo. A printer cannot substantiate a claim about a substrate’s environmental performance without documentation from the substrate manufacturer. This means printers need to build environmental data requirements into their supplier qualification and ongoing supplier management processes. The days when a printer could accept a supplier’s verbal assurance that a material was “sustainable” are ending. Under EmpCo, the printer who makes the claim owns the obligation to prove it, and relying on an unsubstantiated supplier claim does not transfer that liability to the supplier — it exposes the printer to enforcement action.
The long-term opportunity for print service providers is to turn environmental compliance from a cost center into a competitive differentiator. A printer who can provide customers with documented environmental performance data for every job — substrate composition and origin, ink chemistry, energy consumption, waste generation, and end-of-life pathway — offers something that few competitors can currently match. As brand owners face their own sustainability reporting requirements under frameworks like CSRD, the ability to source printed materials with verified environmental credentials from a printer who understands the regulatory landscape becomes a valuable supply chain asset. The EmpCo directive may be a European regulation, but its influence on global supply chains will extend far beyond the EU’s borders.
Source: FESPA, “True Sustainability or Greenwashing? Printing Materials Under Pressure,” by Sonja Angerer, July 8, 2026.
