Sustainability and circular economy in retail
Packaging, food waste, and green marketing — how it affects your day in the store
Sustainability has moved from being something few customers asked about to being part of the legislation and expectations a shop must navigate today. As an employee in retail you meet it in several shades: packaging food waste reuse and how the shop may talk about itself as green.
§The extended producer responsibility for packaging
From 1 October 2025 extended producer responsibility for packaging applies in Denmark. This means that companies that place packaging or packaged goods on the Danish market — manufacturers importers and web shops selling under their own name — now have the economic and administrative responsibility for ensuring that the packaging is collected and recycled when it becomes waste. The responsibility which previously largely lay with the public has thus been transferred to the companies that put packaging into circulation and they must report specific packaging quantities to Danish Producer Responsibility.
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Danish food waste is estimated to be worth billions of kroner per year (estimates range from approximately 8–15 billion kroner depending on method and scope), and much of it arises because consumers and, to some extent, retailers misunderstand date labelling. Research shows that one in three Danes believe 'best before' and 'use-by date' mean the same thing — they do not. 'Best before' (also called 'minimum shelf life') is a guideline about quality, whereas 'use-by date' is used on perishable goods, where the date must be observed strictly for safety reasons.
| Marking | Means |
|---|---|
| Best before / best by | Quality date — the product is often still good to eat after |
| Last date of use | Safety date — follow it strictly (perishable goods) |
The organization Ginetex administers and distributes the international care symbols so that the same symbols are repeated on clothing labels around the world.
§Green marketing — say what you can document
If the store markets itself on green or sustainable messages, the Marketing Practices Act's rules apply: information must not be misleading and factual claims must be verifiable. In October 2024, the Consumer Ombudsman published new recommendations for companies on environmental marketing, advising to use precise statements as possible — e.g. precise figures on recycled content or CO2 footprint — rather than broad and unsubstantiated phrases like 'environmentally friendly' or 'green'. In 2024, the Consumer Ombudsman received more complaints about greenwashing than ever, and rules are being tightened further with an EU directive coming into force in 2026.
- 01Use concrete, documentable statements rather than loose green clichés
- 02Know the difference between 'best before' and 'last use date'
- 03Be aware of packaging and waste sorting in daily operations
- 04Ask your manager if a campaign uses environmental claims you are in doubt about
§Why it concerns you
You don't need to be an expert in legislation to work sustainably in the shop. But you're often the one who in practice sorts waste, handles date-marked goods and answers the customer when she asks why a product is packaged as it is. Understanding the principles behind producer responsibility, date marking and green marketing enables you to answer correctly — and to help make the shop one that customers trust.