The Swan

The Swan is the official Nordic ecolabel, introduced by the Nordic Council of Ministers.

The Swan logo demonstrates that a product is a good environmental choice. The green symbol is available for around 60 product groups for which it is felt that ecolabelling is needed and will be beneficial. These days, everything from washing-up liquid to furniture and hotels can carry the Swan label. The Swan checks that products fulfil certain criteria using methods such as samples from independent laboratories, certificates and control visits.

The label is usually valid for three years, after which the criteria are revised and the company must reapply for a licence. In this way, we ensure that products better suited to the environment are constantly being developed.

Creating the future now

The Swan ecolabel's vision is a sustainable society, in which future generations can benefit from the same conditions and opportunities as we ourselves do. An important step towards this vision is for us all, with the help of ecolabelling, to choose the most environmentally-friendly products.

Choose products displaying the Swan label, and take a step towards a better environment!

The Swan label's criteria

Swan's criteria vary between the different products. Criteria common to all product groups are:

* Attention to the product's impact on the environment from the raw material to waste – i.e. throughout the product's lifecycle.
* Standards with regard to quality and performance. The product must be at least as good as similar products on the market.
* Criteria are raised repeatedly to ensure that a product carrying the Swan label is always at the cutting edge of environmentalism

If you want to know the criteria stipulated by Swan, have a look at our criteria documents.

Links

Nordic Ecolabelling Board