Sustainable consumption and production

The benefits of stricter environmental legislation, technological improvements and the development of more environmentally friendly products are easily cancelled out by the steep increases in the total volumes of consumption.

In order to promote sustainable consumption and production, everyone must make choices that minimise the burden on the environment. Sustainable consumption and production are based on the sparing use of natural resources and raw materials, and on the preferential use of renewable resources.

Programme to promote sustainable consumption and production

Finland is one of the first countries in the world to have drafted a national plan for promoting sustainable consumption and production. The programme "Getting more and better from less" (2005) includes the objective that eco-efficiency should be increased throughout production chains to make Finland one of the world's most eco-efficient societies. To make this vision a reality, the programme calls for long-term, yet flexible, policy-making and introduces an array of 73 policy measures. The proposal for the revised programme was published in May 2012.