EU eco-labels to open new vistas

ZEE News, June 25, 2008

EU eco-labels would provide Indian textile exporters new opportunities, European marker Robert Donkers, first counsellor of the European Commission EC said on Wednesday.

“‘Eco-labels’ is a certificate of environmental quality and the EU eco-labels are ones that are ratified by EC,” Donkers told a two-day workshop organised by the Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS) and the Confederation of Indian Textiles Industries (CITI), in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) here.

The event marked the first opportunity for national stakeholders to get information on eco-labelling opportunities and was a part of a project titled, “Enabling developing countries to seize eco-label opportunities” funded by the EU and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The project aims at providing technical assistance and building capacity of a wide range of national stakeholders to increase market access in developed countries and promoting more sustainable consumption and production patterns.

In India, it specifically aims at supporting Indian industries in attaining the EU eco-label for their products