Final eco-design regulations published
Final eco-design regulation documents for refrigerated products were published on 1 October 2019. These were for:
- Refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function (terminology for commercial appliances)
- Household refrigerators
There is now a two-month period where there is a right to express an objection. After this period the texts will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union (publication date 5 December 2019).
Eco-design rules and energy labels will be applied throughout Europe from 1 March 2021. For commercial appliances the Energy Efficiency Index (EEI) will be:
- From 1 March 2021:
- Ice-cream freezers: EEI <80
- All other refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function: EEI <100
- From 1 September 2023:
- Ice-cream freezers: EEI <50
- All other refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function: EEI <80
New to the eco-design regulations for these products are requirements related to recyclability of appliances. Information on availability of spare parts, delivery of spare parts, access to repair and maintenance information and requirements for dismantling for material recovery and recycling while avoiding pollution are included. Information is also required on temperature settings for optimum temperature control and the impact of temperature settings on food waste.
New labels will include a QR code that will enable consumers to obtain product information using a smartphone. This data will be available from the European Product Database for Energy Labelling (EPREL) database. This is a database where manufacturers are required to load information about their products. The EPREL was introduced as it has been estimated that 10-25% of products on the market do not fully comply with eco-design and labelling regulations and that this results in approximately 10% loss in potential energy savings. The EPREL provides a means for end users and compliance bodies to check that appliances comply with labelling regulations. By ensuring that manufactures list products on the EPREL it also generates greater transparency in the performance of appliances and enables end users to compare performance of appliances.
For further details on these eco-design regulations contact Judith Evans at RD&T (j.a.evans@rdandt.co.uk).