Overview
EN ISO 14026:2018 (ISO 14026:2017) sets out principles, requirements and guidelines for the communication of footprint information for products. It is part of the environmental labels and declarations family and aims to ensure footprint communications are credible, transparent and not misleading. The standard covers footprint communications and footprint communication programmes, including requirements for verification procedures, but it does not specify how to quantify a footprint and excludes footprints unrelated to environmental impacts (for example, social or economic footprints) and organizational footprints.
Key topics and requirements
- Principles: credibility, reliability, life cycle perspective, comparability, transparency and regionality.
- Communication requirements: general rules for presenting footprint information, intended audience identification, and required supporting information.
- Footprint graphics and multiple footprints: guidance on visual presentation and communicating more than one footprint type.
- Comparative communications: rules and restrictions for comparing products, including types of comparisons and conditions to avoid misleading claims.
- Data use and quality: acceptable footprint results, data quality assurance, confidentiality rules and specific provisions for data used in comparative claims.
- Footprint communication programmes: scope and operator responsibilities, use of Product Category Rules (PCRs), programme rules, monitoring and declarations of conformity.
- Verification: requirements for verification of footprint communications, verifier competence and verifier independence.
Practical applications
- Developing product environmental labels, ecolabels or environmental declarations that include footprint claims.
- Designing footprint communication programmes or schemes (public or private) that require consistent rules, PCRs and verification.
- Preparing public-facing product information (web pages, labels, declarations) where environmental footprint claims must be defensible, comparable and verifiable.
- Supporting procurement policies and third‑party ecolabelling by ensuring footprint communications meet standardized transparency and comparability criteria.
Who should use this standard
- Product manufacturers and brand owners communicating environmental footprint information.
- Ecolabelling bodies, programme operators and certification bodies managing footprint schemes.
- Sustainability managers, marketing teams and compliance officers preparing footprint claims.
- Verifiers and auditors assessing the correctness, traceability and impartiality of footprint communications.
- Procurement specialists and sustainability consultants seeking standardized, comparable product footprint information.
Related standards
- ISO 14020 series (relationship noted in EN ISO 14026) and other life‑cycle assessment (LCA) related standards that underpin credible footprint communication.
Keywords: EN ISO 14026:2018, ISO 14026:2017, footprint communication, environmental labels, ecolabelling, product footprint, verification, Product Category Rules, transparency, life cycle perspective.