No inconsistent, unreliable and opportunistic politics – we need to stay on course for nature, our climate, and the economy.                        

October 30, 2025                                      

‍

Turning away from the Green Deal will cause far greater long-term harm – to our environment, the industry and consumers alike.                              

Since the launch of the European Green Deal in 2019, companies around the world have invested billions of euros in sustainable technologies, processes, and materials. Yet our most important partner – the environment – does not take a break, show leniency, or wait for human indecision. It only delivers if we do not disturb or hinder it.    

‍

 That’s why we urgently need a stronger focus on:                              

• Future-proof agriculture.
• Reliable access to raw materials and their responsible use.
• Resilient and fully transparent supply chains.

All this requires political consistency, not a back-and-forth between election cycles and opportunism. Businesses need planning certainty to invest in the right steps – time and again, this has proven essential.                              

On 23 October 2025, EU heads of state and government met in Brussels to once again discuss a potential softening of the European Green Deal’s objectives and the balance between climate protection and competitiveness.    

Already in November 2024, more than 50 companies – including global players – had addressed an open letter to the European Commission, urging them to stay the course:    

 “We, the undersigned companies, stand firmly behind the European Green Deal and its continuation.”    

Source: A business perspective: Strong environmental standards foster long-term competitiveness    

Why this is not only vital for the planet – but for the economy itself?    

• Planning certainty is the foundation of innovation and investment.
• Regulatory consistency creates trust along entire value chains.
• Unstable environmental policy and hesitant action cost far more than they may seem to save in the short term:
• Climate-related extreme events already cause around 143 billion USD in damage each year.
• Without effective measures, losses could rise to up to 38 trillion USD annually by 2050 – a 19 % drop in global income. (Sources: Nature Communications 2023 / PIK Potsdam 2024)
• Massive strategic friction losses caused by sudden policy shifts. Indecision breeds overload, frustration, and political disillusionment.

Signatories – strong voices from the business community that back the deal:                              

Nestlé | Unilever | Ferrero | IKEA | Patagonia | Accor | Sysco | H&M Group | Danone | L'Oréal | Mars | Henkel | Ecolab | Philips | Interface | Tetra Pak | The HEINEKEN Company | Colgate-Palmolive | Schneider Electric | Essity | Kingfisher plc | Coca-Cola Europacific Partners | Saint-Gobain | Electrolux | BASF | Novozymes | Umicore | Kering | SWAROVSKI | DHL | Vattenfall | Veolia | Iberdrola | Scania Group | P&G | SAP | BMW Group | Borealis | Lenzing AG | Neste | Sappi | DSM-Firmenich | Ball Corporation | ArcelorMittal | SIG Combibloc | EssilorLuxottica | Husqvarna | AB InBev | Sonae | Colruyt Group | Auchan | Carlsberg | Kärcher | VAUDE | Tchibo | Wessanen | Fenix Outdoor | Sodexo | METRO AG (Full list of signatories via source above.)    

Regulatory context at EU level                                          

• PPWR – Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation: adopted and entering into implementation.
• ️CSRD – Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive: remains a central transparency instrument.
• EmpCo – Empowering Consumers for a Green Transition: in force, protecting consumers and ensuring fair conditions for credible environmental communication.    

Regardless of a future Green Claims Directive, one principle remains clear: Every environmental and sustainability claim must be clear, verifiable, and independently substantiated.    

The call to action            

• Politics: Clear, stable, and reliable rules – not a policy that shifts with the political wind. Better to move decisively in the right direction than two steps forward and three back.
• Business: Think long term – climate protection is not a cost factor but a foundation of competitiveness, even without accounting for non-monetary corporate costs.
• Society: Success is not measured by the quarter, but by what endures for the next ten or twenty-five years. If we fail, society will bear the cost – 38 trillion USD annually. Someone will have to pay the bill.

#GreenDeal #Sustainability #Economy #PPWR #CSRD #EmpCo #CircularEconomy #ClimateAction #Reliability #flustix #RethinkPlastics