On June 5, 2026, the 55th World Environment Day was observed in China under the national theme “Comprehensive Green Transition, Building a Beautiful China.” To mark this occasion, China announced significant progress in the development of its green product assessment standard system.

As of June 12, 2026, China has officially released the GB/T 33761-2024 General Principles for Green Product Assessment, alongside 47 product-specific national standards for green product assessment (See attached list below). Among these standards, 39 are currently effective and 8 are to be implemented soon, including:

1. GB/T 47420-2026 Green product assessment—Pallets (Effective from July 1, 2026)
2. GB/T 46854-2025 Green product assessment—Water purification equipment (Effective from July 1, 2026)
3. GB/T 47090-2026 Green product assessment—Steel tubes (Effective from August 1, 2026)
4. GB/T 47095-2026 Green product assessment—Roofing tiles (Effective from August 1, 2026)
5. GB/T 47096-2026 Green product assessment—Cement (Effective from August 1, 2026)
6. GB/T 47103-2026 Green product assessment—Paving building products (Effective from August 1, 2026)
7. GB/T 47223-2026 Green product assessment—Inorganic fertilizer (Effective from September 1, 2026)
8. GB/T 35611-2024 Green product assessment—Textile products (Effective from October 1, 2026)

These standards cover high-priority sectors where consumer demand for upgrades is strong, including household appliances, electronics and information technology, building materials, and steel.

According to the GB/T 33761-2024, a green product is defined as one that, throughout its entire life cycle, meets environmental protection requirements, poses little to no harm to the ecological environment and human health, consumes minimal resources and energy, has low carbon emissions, and demonstrates high quality.

A notable example is the office equipment sector. The GB/T 45600-2025 Green product assessment—Copying devices and stencil duplicator establishes a comprehensive green product evaluation indicator system for copiers and duplicators. Preliminary estimates indicate that full implementation of the standard could reduce energy consumption by 15% to 20% annually while maintaining product quality. This translates to annual electricity savings of over 200 million kilowatt-hours and a roughly 20% reduction in hazardous substance emissions.

The release and implementation of these standards are expected to guide and encourage enterprises to undertake technological upgrades, phase out outdated and inefficient products, and enhance their capacity to produce green products. Ultimately, the standards will help improve overall management and green production levels, driving the transformation and upgrading of industries such as the copier and duplicator sector.