What is the green label certificate for products and what are the requirements for obtaining it?

What is the green label certificate for products and what are the requirements for obtaining it?

On the thirteenth of October, two years ago, Law No. (202) of 2020 was issued regarding the organization and management of waste. This long-awaited law begins a new era in better regulating waste management in Egypt, after years of absence of a unified legal framework. Responsibility is dispersed among a number of agencies.

On February 22, 2022, Prime Minister’s Decision No. (722) of 2022 was issued regarding issuing the executive regulations of Law (202) of 2020, thus completing the executive structure for implementing the provisions and articles of the law regulatingWaste Management in a way Effective, as the responsibility for preparing and monitoring plans and ensuring compliance with the articles of the law falls on the “Waste Management Regulatory Authority.”

The law and its executive regulations have referred in more than one place to what is known as the “Green Label” system, where it explained what is meant by this system, how different institutions can benefit from it, and what its requirements are. Below we briefly review the label system. Green.

What is the green flag?

Perhaps one of the most prominent points addressed by the law and detailed in its executive regulations is the “Green Mark” system. The law defined the term “Green Mark” in its Article No. (1), Clause No. 41, which states: “The Green Mark: is a certificate granted to manufacturers when designing their products in a way that reduces the generation of waste or helps to recycle them after consumption, and the label is placed on the products to inform the consumer of environmentally friendly products.”

As for the special requirements for products to obtain the “green label,” the law stated in Article No. (52) that: “The agency, in cooperation with the Ministry of Trade and Industry, shall establish a green label system to motivate manufacturers to increase the percentage of recyclable inputs and reduce the generation of industrial waste. The executive regulations of this law specify the requirements and specifications for products subject to this system, the requirements for obtaining a green mark certificate and the model of this certificate.”

The executive regulations of the law stipulate in Article No. (1) of it in Clause No. 47 thereof that: “The green mark: a certificate granted to manufacturers when they design their products in a way that limits the generation of waste or helps in recycling them after consumption. The mark is placed on the products to identify consumer of environmentally friendly products.”, which is the same formula that was mentioned in the law.

The term “Green Mark” is mentioned in more than one article of the Executive Regulations, as we find it in Article No. (19), which talks about a system of financial and economic incentives and tax and customs exemptions; To encourage the import, production and manufacture of safe, environmentally friendly alternatives to single-use plastic bags, as Article No. 2 of it stipulates: “The agency grants a green label certificate for safe alternative products to every factory that produces multi-use or biodegradable plastic bags in accordance with the standard specifications issued in this regard. Factories that have obtained this certificate have the right to use the green mark on their products.”

What are the requirements for obtaining the green mark?

As for the requirements for the green mark system, Article No. (44) of the executive regulations clarified that the responsibility for establishing this system is shared between the Waste Management Regulatory Authority and the Ministry of Trade and Industry. It also stipulated the requirements and specifications for the green mark system, as they are summarized in: 4 basic points:

1- The products must be made of materials that are less hazardous in manufacturing, so that they are not harmful to human health or the environment, such as harmful chemicals and others.

2- Rationalizing the use of hazardous materials and natural resources such as water and electricity during the production process.

3- The product design must be effective and lead to a reduction in the resulting industrial waste.

4- The product must be recyclable.

However, these requirements did not clarify the situation regarding consumer products that are not originally available for recycling, such as food products for example, or some building materials products such as paints or some other consumable materials, so it is expected in the coming weeks that the guideline for the green label will be issued. By the Waste Management Regulatory Authority, in order to better clarify matters.

In Article No. (45) of the executive regulations of the law, it was indicated that priority in granting the green mark will be to manufacturers who redesign the product, so that it becomes completely or partially recyclable in a way that does not negatively affect the specifications of the final product, and in a way that leads to reducing The accumulation of industrial waste in intermediate stations and landfills, and companies submit to the agency an application to obtain a green mark certificate, using Appendix No. (12) of the appendices of the executive regulations, which is entitled “Application form for obtaining the green mark.”

Appendix No. (12) indicates at the beginning that the Waste Management Regulatory Authority is the body responsible for issuing the guideline that explains the procedures that the applicant must follow to obtain the green mark, as well as the list of the types of products that have been selected to obtain the green mark, and the specifications that must be met. In the product to obtain the green mark.

The applicant for the green label shall fill out the form shown in Appendix No. (12) in accordance with the guideline that will be issued by the Waste Management Regulatory Authority, by submitting a set of data related to the facility and the product.

If the submitted application is approved,The Waste Management Regulatory Authoritywill issue a green mark certificate, according to the form also shown in Appendix No. (12) of the executive regulations.

What is the expected benefit from the green mark system?

Following in the footsteps of the European Union countries, activating and adopting the “green label” system, combined with increasing consumer awareness, could ultimately lead to a rise in demand for environmentally friendly products, and change the consumption pattern of the public to place environmental and sustainability considerations as one of the basic elements when comparing between a product. And another, in addition to companies realizing the weight that the green mark certificate carries, which can give them a strong competitive advantage, and can also open the horizon for them to spread and export their products abroad.

The green label system is supposed to encourage an increase in the rates of production of multi-use plastic bags, due to the incentives and facilities that the law promises for factories that will adopt this type of product. The green label system is supposed to encourage manufacturers to increase recyclable components in industrial processes, which in turn will contribute to achieving the principle of the circular economy, in addition to ridding the environment of large amounts of waste.

As for us, as protectors of the earth, we hope for the speedy activation and conscious application of the green mark system. This is to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and to truly encourage manufacturers to invest in clean production processes and convert products to environmentally friendly products, otherwise the green label will end up becoming a “mark on paper.”