An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is a standardised and independently verified document that reports the environmental impact of a product based on a life-cycle assessment (LCA). An EPD follows international standards such as EN 15804 and ISO 14025, making products comparable on environmental performance. It functions as a product environmental passport: transparent, verifiable and recognised in the market.
What does an EPD contain?
An EPD contains the environmental effects of a product across the life cycle, divided into impact categories such as climate change, acidification, resource depletion, water use and land use. The data comes from a life-cycle assessment (LCA) and is verified by an independent party, making the figures reliable and comparable.
What is an EPD used for?
- Sustainable procurement — objectively compare environmental performance when choosing between products.
- Construction and MPG — EPD data feeds building environmental performance calculations.
- Tendering and certification — provide substantiation for requirements, labels and assessment schemes.
- Communication — support credible, verified environmental claims towards customers.
EPD versus LCA
A life-cycle assessment is the underlying analysis that calculates environmental impact. An EPD is the standardised and verified reporting of that result under fixed rules. In other words, every EPD is based on an LCA, but not every LCA leads to an EPD. The EPD adds verification and comparability.
EPD, circularity and ecodesign
Because an EPD shows impact by life-cycle phase, it also reveals where circular and regenerative design choices can make the largest difference. This connects EPD data to the R-ladder and to regenerative design.
How New Economy supports EPD work
New Economy develops life-cycle assessments that can serve as the basis for an EPD and translates the results into practical design and strategy choices. Environmental data then becomes a steering instrument, not only a declaration. See Product Footprint.
Frequently asked questions about Environmental Product Declarations
EPD stands for Environmental Product Declaration: a standardised, verified document describing the environmental impact of a product.
A life-cycle assessment calculates environmental impact. An EPD is the standardised, independently verified reporting of that result.
An EPD follows international standards, especially EN 15804 and ISO 14025, which support consistency and comparability between products.
An EPD is usually not legally mandatory, but it is increasingly requested in procurement, certification and construction, including for building environmental performance calculations.
An EPD delivers verified and comparable environmental data that supports credible claims and gives direction to circular and regenerative design choices.
For an EPD or life-cycle assessment, see Product Footprint, or use the contact page to explore next steps.