The European Commission's Integrated Product Policy Communication, since 2003, identified Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) as the "best framework for assessing the potential environmental impacts of products". This Communication highlighted the necessity for a Platform on LCA to increase the availability of quality life-cycle data and methods. The EC, through its DG Environment and JRC, responded to these needs by establishing the European Platform on Life Cycle Assessment (EPLCA).

The EPLCA aims at supporting the use of LCA into business and policies. Specifically for policies, the EPLCA is supporting the use of LCA in line with the European Commission Better Regulation Toolbox - method (#64) - for the impact assessment of policies.

The EPLCA fosters LCA as an essential integrated environmental assessment in support to the EU policy making process and the ambition of Green Deal and many other policy initiatives, as the Circular Economy Action Plan, the Farm-to-Fork, the Biodiversity Strategy, the Chemical Strategy, and many more.

The EPLCA is articulated in several sections to respond to the different needs of scientists, business and policy makers for methods, data, studies and tools for quality LCA. For more information on the LCA methodology, read more here.