On May 26, 2008, the Technical Requirement for Environmental Labeling Products-Reprocessed Toner Modules (hereinafter referred to as the common standard), which is developed by Environmental Development Center (EDC) under MEP, China Environmental United (Beijing) Certification Center Co., Ltd. (CEC), Federal Environmental Agency (UBA), and German Institute for Quality Assurance and Certification (RAL) and shared by China's eco-labels and Germany's Blue Angel label was officially released.

Started from 1993 and over more than ten years' development, China's eco-labeling plan has been gradually mature and certified 65 kinds of products in the areas of home appliances, office apparatus, daily commodities, textiles and decorations and furnishings. In China, eco-label has become an important environmental-friendly tool for promoting energy saving and emissions reduction and protecting the public health by market approaches. As early as 1978, Germany, which is among the earliest countries that had eco-label plans, introduced the eco-label-Blue Angel system. At the same time, Blue Angel is one of the eco-labels that certify the products of the most varieties with the most standards, and with the abundant experience from years' practice, it is of great influence in Germany and even the whole world.

The cooperation on and mutual recognition of eco-labels between China and Germany were initiated under the framework of "China-Germany Environment Forum" held in Qingdao on January 2006. In April 2007, China's eco-label and Germany's Blue Angel officially signed the Agreement of China and Germany on Mutual Recognition of Eco-labels, and over the past year, both sides have active exchanges and discussions on the management and implementation of the common standard as well as the first common standard, Technical Requirement for Environmental Labeling Products-Reprocessed Toner Modules, reaching common consensus. The release of the first common standard symbolized the major progress made in the two countries' cooperation on and mutual recognition of the eco-labels. The main significance is as follows:

1. As coherent standard for products is one of the important preconditions for mutual recognition of eco-labels among countries, the introduction of this common standard has effectively promoted China's process on mutual recognition, helped get across the green trade barrier, and promoted the development of foreign trade.
2. The common standard enables the producers to learn about the internationally advanced environmental standards for products, which helps the enterprises to constantly adjust the product mix, facilitate the products' updating, and improve their international competitiveness.
3. The common standard helps China's eco-labels to involve in the mutual recognition of the international eco-labels, actively take part in developing international rules on eco-labels, increase its influence on the international community and safeguard the country's interests. 
4. The common standard carves out a green pass for the producers to get across the green trade barrier, effectively guides more enterprises to produce more environment-friendly products, helps promote the sustainable consumption process in China, and facilitates the building of an environment-friendly society.

The eco-labeling organizations of China and Germany highly appreciated the introduction of common standard and agreed that it is one of the big steps towards the mutual recognition of eco-labels. Both sides agreed that the next move is to develop a common standard for wooden toys.