EU plans to scrap anti-greenwashing rules after pushback

The "Green Claims Directive" would require companies to provide hard facts to back up claims that their products are carbon-neutral, biodegradable or "less polluting". Businesses would need to submit evidence for environmental claims for approval by independent verifiers -- with fines and other penalties for failure to comply. "In the current context, the commission intends to withdraw the Green Claims proposal," the EU executive's spokesperson on environmental matters, Maciej Berestecki, told reporters.