New Standards in Sustainable Business and their Impact on EU Markets

After 20 years, the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reached a qualitatively new level in the ESG (Environment, Social, Governance), emphasising sustainable development through environmental protection, social responsibility and business management.The new EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) contains European standards for reporting sustainability information (European Sustainability Reporting Standards) and for their publication.This mandatory non-financial reporting for large companies will affect smaller companies shortly because, for example, banks already assess ESG factors when deciding on operating and investment loans and adjust interest rates accordingly.Also, large companies already require ESG information from their supply chains for reporting.The paper presents the CSRD legislation and its impact on the enterprise's sustainability. Paper's objective(s) and research backgroundThe background of a research paper brings the context about new standards in sustainable business and their impact on EU markets and the relevant literature to understand the research problem.The goal of the research is to bring new information to the solved issue of sustainable business in the EU and to point out the state of the issue in the packaging industry with the introduction of Regulatory rules for packaging. Data/MethodsIn the presented article, the authors analyze the EU directives that determine companies' obligations for ESG reporting using a uniform methodology according to the CSRD directive. Results/Conclusions/Value addedThe European Commission, aware of the shortcomings in the existing rules for disclosing nonfinancial information about organizations in the NFRD (Non-financial Reporting Directive), proposed their amendment through the new CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive).The article provides a comparison of both directives.The results show a case study of ESG application in a packaging company and simultaneously bring structured information about Regulatory rules for packaging.