Why EU is turning again to flower power

Date: 05/12/02

By Karen Carstens

A CHERRY-red catwalk. Pulsating electronic music. Tall, slinky models gliding barefoot through sprays of mist beneath bright lights, staring elegantly into the distance.

Some are clad in outlandish yet bizarrely appealing ensembles of fluid skirts, bunchy post-modern 'harem pants', tunics or crop tops, others are wearing little more than their cotton underwear.

But all have one thing in common: their garments were produced under the most 'ecological' conditions.

The natural textiles were among a host of products displayed by the European Commission at a two-day celebration marking the 10th anniversary of the EU Eco-label - also known as the 'flower'.

Staged in the Art Nouveau surroundings of the Residence Palace in Brussels, the event began on Monday (2 December) with an awards ceremony and fashion show featuring clothes by young female designers from Denmark's TEKO fashion institute.

Margot Wallström, the Swedish environment commissioner, handed out certificates to some two dozen companies from across Europe whose products carry the flower - nearly half were from Denmark - as well as to ten Brussels art school students who participated in an EU-sponsored eco-label poster contest.

'Transparent and reliable information on the environmental quality of products is necessary to help consumers make the right choices,' said Wallström. 'The EU eco-label fulfils that role as it is the guide to greener products in the European market.'

In 2000, a regulation was introduced to streamline the eco-label, she added. Since then, sales of eco-label products have soared by more than 300%, especially in Denmark, France, Spain, Italy and Greece.

Launched in 1992, the flower label is now used by 19 different product groups and licences have been granted by the EU to 120 companies to use it on several hundred different lines.

The products so far include textiles, footwear, cleaning items, paper, indoor paints and varnishes, household appliances and gardening paraphernalia.

One trendy representative of Danish award-winner Hemp Valley emphasised the usefulness of his company's clothing, which is produced from the fibre of the hemp plant, better known as the source of marijuana: 'It's very nice to wear, you don't just smoke it. Try it!'

Wallström said that the Commission's eco-label website is one of three operated by her directorate that receives the most 'hits' from online visitors.

She also used the occasion to announce the launch of a new Commission-sponsored online eco-label 'interactive catalogue' (www.eco-label.com).

But BEUC, the Union's consumers' organisation, said the Commission must do more to raise the profile of the flower. A survey conducted on its website found that 75% of respondents chose green products when shopping, but only 38% know about the EU eco-label, and 74% did not know where to find 'flower products'.

The consumer group urged the Commission 'to target its information more to the needs of individual consumers', and suggested eco-labels on everyday products such as toys and toiletries, as opposed to less frequently purchased items such as heaters and mattresses.

The Commission should also make its eco-label website more informative and create a helpdesk providing information on where to buy these products.

'It does not help if the consumer is advised to contact manufacturers in their own country,' BEUC said. 'We need an easy accessible list of retailers selling these products across the EU.'

It also asked why the 19 eco-label product groups also still carry self-declared green labels, pointing out that the eco-label alone should suffice.

Jim Murray, BEUC director, added: 'If the eco-label is the European answer to sustainable consumption, then it must be supported more strongly than it is now.'

But Wallström emphasised that the Commission and the European Eco-labelling Board plan to further raise the profile of the flower by developing ecological criteria for new product groups to expand the eco-label range.

Criteria for vacuum cleaners and the first service sector - tourist accommodation - will be made available shortly. Work on other product groups, such as furniture, is also under way.

In addition, an extensive European-wide flower marketing campaign is planned for 2004 to bring it closer to consumers.

Report of a two-day celebration marking the 10th anniversary of the EU eco-label, Brussels, 2-3 December 2002.