Sept 27, 2026
178 days until EU ECGT enforcement
Your sustainability badges may become illegal under EU Directive 2024/825
ECGT bans vague claims like "eco-friendly", "carbon neutral", and "sustainable". CarbonTag replaces them with specific, cited carbon disclosures — backed by publicly auditable methodology.
Free tier available · No credit card required
What ECGT bans — and why "carbon neutral" is now a liability
EU Directive 2024/825 — the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (ECGT) directive — prohibits a specific category of environmental marketing claims across the EU. If you sell to EU consumers, it applies to you regardless of where your business is registered.
Banned under ECGT:
Generic environmental labels ("eco-friendly", "sustainable", "green", "carbon neutral", "climate positive")
Carbon offset-based claims unless they meet specific, strict criteria for verification
Claims that cannot be substantiated with specific, publicly auditable data
Future environmental claims without a firm, verified commitment plan
The directive applies to any business selling to EU consumers — B2C e-commerce, marketplaces, DTC brands — regardless of where the business is incorporated. If you have a single EU customer and you display a sustainability badge, you're in scope.
Up to 4% of annual turnover
Maximum fine for non-compliant environmental claims in EU member states
September 27, 2026
Enforcement date — when non-compliant claims become actionable violations
EU 2024/825
The directive reference — amending Directives 2005/29/EC and 2011/83/EU
Any merchant selling to EU consumers
Scope is based on customer location, not business registration country
The most popular Shopify sustainability apps are at risk
The three most widely-used Shopify sustainability apps rely on carbon offset purchases and display "carbon neutral" badges on product pages. These badges will be non-compliant after September 27, 2026 unless the underlying offset claims meet ECGT's strict new verification criteria — criteria most existing offset schemes do not meet.
Two ways to add compliant carbon labels
For Shopify Merchants
One-click install from the Shopify App Store. No developer required. Billed through your Shopify subscription.
CarbonTag reads your product catalog and auto-detects categories — apparel, electronics, homewares, and more.
An App Block places carbon badges on product pages. No code required. Works with all major Shopify themes.
The API — for any platform
Embeddable Badge Output
GET /badge/{token}.svg — embeds anywhere
Python and Node.js SDKs available
OpenAPI spec — import to Postman or Insomnia
Instant API key on the free tier
Every response includes a disclosure URL
Transparent pricing, no usage surprises
Built on publicly auditable emission factors
Every estimate uses emission factors from named, versioned, publicly accessible government and industry sources. The specific factors used are cited in each badge's linked disclosure page — anyone can verify the calculation.
DEFRA GHG Conversion Factors 2024
UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
Updated annually by the UK government. Used for manufacturing emission factors and material-level carbon intensities across apparel, electronics, homewares, and food categories.
Manufacturing & materials
GLEC Framework v3.0
Smart Freight Centre
Global Logistics Emissions Council framework for calculating transport-related emissions. The internationally recognised standard for freight carbon accounting across sea, air, road, and rail.
Shipping & logistics
EPA Supply Chain Emission Factors
US Environmental Protection Agency
Supplementary emission factors for North American supply chains. Used when origin country is the US or Canada and DEFRA factors are less applicable.
North American supply chains
Methodology transparency
Every badge links to a disclosure page showing which emission factors were used, their source document and version, and the step-by-step calculation. We use "estimate" and "based on" language throughout — these are category-level estimates, not product-level lifecycle assessments. Medium confidence, clearly stated.
Confidence level
For most Shopify merchants, medium-confidence, category-level estimates are sufficient for ECGT specificity requirements. The directive requires substantiated claims with cited methodology — not ISO 14040 full lifecycle assessments.
Shopify merchants and developers, both covered
Shopify Merchants
Install once, done. No developer, no ongoing maintenance.
One-click install from Shopify App Store
No code required — ever
App Block places badges automatically on product pages
Native Shopify billing — charged through your subscription
Badge live in under 10 minutes
Works with all major Shopify themes
Available on the Shopify App Store
Common questions
Yes. Existing offset-based "carbon neutral" badges will become non-compliant under ECGT after September 27, 2026. CarbonTag replaces them with a specific, substantiated disclosure — a carbon footprint estimate with a cited methodology. This is what the directive actually requires: specificity and a named source, not a general environmental claim.
No. CarbonTag is not a legal certification service. It generates substantiated carbon disclosures using publicly auditable emission factors. Whether a specific disclosure satisfies ECGT in your jurisdiction is a question for legal counsel. Our disclosures are designed to meet the directive's specificity requirement — but we won't tell you we're a compliance guarantee.
ECGT applies to any business selling to EU consumers, regardless of where the business is based. If you have EU customers and use environmental claims anywhere on your storefront — product pages, marketing emails, social media linked to your store — the directive applies to you. The scope is determined by your customers' location, not your business registration.
Medium confidence. CarbonTag uses category-level emission factors from DEFRA, GLEC, and EPA — not product-level lifecycle audits. Every estimate includes a stated confidence level and methodology citation. For most Shopify merchants, category-level estimates are sufficient for ECGT compliance; the directive requires specificity and citation, not the precision of a full ISO 14040 lifecycle assessment.
Yes. The REST API works with any platform. POST to /estimate with product data — category, weight, material, origin country, shipping mode — and get carbon figures and a methodology citation back. The badge SVG endpoint (GET /badge/{token}.svg) returns an embeddable image that works anywhere you can display an image.
Enforcement begins September 27, 2026. Non-compliant environmental claims can result in fines of up to 4% of annual turnover in EU member states that have implemented the directive into national law. The specific enforcement mechanism — whether it's a national regulator, consumer complaint process, or competitor challenge — varies by country, but the timeline is fixed by the directive.