Recent Development
The Ministry of Environment and Urban Planning (“Ministry”) introduced the Regulation on Ecolabels (“Regulation”), which entered into force by publication in the Official Gazette on October 19, 2018. The Regulation sets out the principles and procedures regarding the use of ecolabels to promote products or services with reduced environmental impact.
What’s New?
The ecolabel system aims to prevent the degradation of ecosystems and reduce the negative effects of the consumption of natural resources on the environment, nature, climate and human beings at all stages of the product life cycle such as production, use, consumption and recycling stages.
Use of ecolabels will be voluntary. As such, manufacturers, exporters, importers, service providers, wholesalers and retailers can choose to use ecolabels on the products and services produced, distributed, placed on the market through export and import in Turkey.
Companies who wish to use ecolabels on their products and services must apply to the Ministry by submitting the application petition; the information and documents relating to the product/service and the company; and the documents listed in the Regulation or requested by the Ministry.
The applicant will become an “ecolabel user” following the approval of the application and the execution of the ecolabel use agreement with the Ministry. The ecolabel use will be granted for a period of four years; the user can apply for an extension upon expiration.
The Ministry will determine and announce the details regarding the environmental label’s color, logo, size, product group, criterion and registration information and the positioning of this information on the label. The full text of the Regulation is available here (in Turkish).
Conclusion
The Ministry continues to take actions to protect nature and public health and to raise environmental awareness among consumers. The Ministry believes the use of ecolabels will allow consumers to easily identify eco-friendly products. Companies wishing to use ecolabels on their products and services must benefit from this opportunity and carefully review the requirements set forth under the Regulation and apply to the Ministry for use of ecolabels.
