European Commission

• New EU GPP criteria on Indoor Lighting and update of eight existing EU GPP criteria sets
  The Commission has published new criteria for indoor lighting and has updated the following criteria sets: office IT equipment, transport, electricity, cleaning products and services, textiles, gardening products and services, hard-floor coverings, street lighting and traffic signals.
  The new criteria and technical background reports for each set of criteria can be found here.
• Public Consultation on future GPP policies open until 3/4/2012
  The European Commission is gathering views and additional information on the potential measures related to Sustainable Consumption and Production. As part of this, we are consulting on options for policies implementing Green Public Procurement. The consultation also looks at the Environmental Footprint of Products and the Environmental Footprint of Organisations.
  Contribute to the public consultation.

Europe's public authorities are major consumers. By using their purchasing power to choose environmentally friendly goods, services and works, they can make an important contribution to sustainable consumption and production – what we call Green Public Procurement, or GPP.

Although GPP is a voluntary instrument, it has a key role to play in the EU's efforts to become a more resource-efficient economy. It can help stimulate a critical mass of demand for more sustainable goods and services which otherwise would be difficult to get onto the market. GPP is therefore a strong stimulus for eco-innovation.

To be a success, GPP needs clear and verifiable environmental criteria for products and services. A number of European countries already have national criteria, and the challenge now, as GPP becomes more widespread, is to ensure that the criteria are compatible between Member States. A level playing field will boost the single market, ensuring that what is good for the EU is also good for the environment.