The rule in one minute
Article 25 of the ESPR prohibits large enterprises from destroying unsold consumer products listed in Annex VII from 19 July 2026. The listed categories cover apparel, clothing accessories and footwear. Medium-sized enterprises follow from 19 July 2030; micro and small enterprises are excluded from the prohibition.
What “destruction” includes
Under the ESPR, destruction includes intentionally damaging or discarding a product, except where it is discarded solely for preparation for reuse, including refurbishment or remanufacturing. Recycling is treated as destruction for this rule. Sending stock to a recycler is therefore not automatically a compliant alternative.
Disclosure and evidence
The separate disclosure rules require covered economic operators to publish information on discarded unsold consumer products, including product category, quantities, weight, reasons, waste-treatment operations and prevention measures. Product, inventory and disposition data must therefore remain connected after a commercial decision is made.
Derogations are controlled exceptions
Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/296 sets limited derogations, including defined health, safety, compliance and damage scenarios. A company should record the affected products, decision, evidence, applicable derogation and final treatment route rather than relying on a generic write-off reason.
An operational control model
- Classify products against the covered Annex VII categories.
- Track unsold units by SKU, location and status.
- Route stock first to reuse, donation, refurbishment or remanufacturing where feasible.
- Require documented approval for any destruction decision.
- Retain the reason, evidence, quantity, weight and treatment route.
- Generate the public disclosure from the same governed records.