Energy Star
Developed by the American government’s environmental agency EPA (and also adopted abroad) this trademark, which appears on electrical appliances, ranging from fridges to hairdryers, and information technology products, indicates the most efficient in terms of energy consumption.
Today this symbol can also be applied to new houses, industrial and commercial buildings. The EPA estimates that this label saved 10 billion dollars in energy costs in 2004 alone.

Energy Labels
Since 1998 in Europe, fridges, freezers, washing machines and dishwashers have all had to show energy labels to highlight data regarding consumption (electrical and water) and the performance of the appliance on an efficiency scale from A (minimum consumption) to G (energy inefficiency). The annual energy consumption of a class A appliance is about half that of a class G appliance. It is linked to the Energy Efficiency Recommended Logo, the symbol that marks the appliances that satisfy or surpass governmental energy efficiency parameters.

European Eco Label
A flower is the symbol that the EU countries use for environmental certification of products and services with minimum environmental impact. At the moment there are about 300 widely sold consumer goods ranging from detergents to mattresses, paint, shoes, computers and washing machines etc., not including food, drink and medicine.
Using a “cradle to the grave” approach (i.e. measuring the entire life cycle, from the extraction of the raw material right through its disposal) energy consumption, the use of renewable sources, air and water pollution, waste production, environmental security and soil protection are all measured.