BEUC NEWS – 29 June 2026

Last week, the Paris Judicial Court ruled against Danone water brand Volvic for using misleading claims, such as “carbon neutral”, “100% recyclable” and “100% recycled”, on its water bottles. This decision is the result of the legal action brought by CLCV in France. CLCV is one of the 13 BEUC members who filed a complaint to EU authorities in November 2023 about misleading recyclability claims on water bottles marketed by major traders such as Coca-Cola, Danone and Nestlé Waters/Nestlé.  

According to our analysis, such claims breach EU rules on unfair commercial practices. The Court acknowledged that using “100% recycled” or “100% recyclable” messages misleads consumers. As the ink and the glue used for bottle labels cannot be recycled, the “100% recycled” claim is deceptive. Also, there is no guarantee that plastic bottles will be fully recycled once they are disposed of, which undermines consumers’ understanding of the real environmental impact of these products.

While the Court did not focus on the green imagery denounced in our complaint, it ruled that claims about plastic bottles’ carbon neutrality are misleading. Carbon absorption projects aimed at compensating for emissions are too unpredictable to be reliable. This ruling echoes carbon neutral claims that BEUC members have found in airlines’ marketing and on food products.

This step follows Nestlé’s announcement in March 2026 that it would stop using claims and Coca-Cola's commitment last year to partially adapt its labels. BEUC and its members use this opportunity to call on the network of national consumer protection authorities and the European Commission to monitor whether the traders live up to their promises and to swiftly conclude their investigation.

Volvic said they will appeal this ruling.

Check out our vox pop of what consumers across Europe think of water bottle recyclability claims: