The European Parliament and the Council (the Member States) have reached a provisional agreement on proposed European law aimed at making packaging more sustainable and reducing waste. In addition to encouraging recycling and reuse of packaging, it will also include a ban on some plastic products, such as miniature shampoo bottles in hotels. Measures that, according to the European Commission, are more than urgent: each European citizen generated almost 190 kilos of packaging and packaging waste in 2021, a total of more than 80 million tons, which could rise to 209 kilos in 2030 if they do not do this kind of products come to an end.
The proposal takes into account the “full life cycle” of packaging and aims to guarantee that the packaging used in the EU is safer and more sustainable, the Council stressed after learning on Monday evening of the agreement, which still needs to be ratified by both parties before it can come into force. The text, negotiated jointly with the European Parliament based on the Commission proposal presented at the end of 2022, stipulates that by 2030 all packaging should be recyclable, the presence of harmful substances should be minimized and “unnecessary” packaging should be reduced. This requires, for example, that fast food restaurants allow you to bring your own containers for take-away food or drinks at no additional cost and, from 2030, must offer 10% of their products in reusable packaging formats. . For their part, manufacturers and importers must reduce to a minimum packaging where the maximum empty space in it is 50%, to prevent orders, such as those made by digital platforms, from arriving in large packages in which they are contained is more than that half of the place. The new regulations will also promote improved collection and recycling: from 2029, for example, 90% of disposable plastic and metal beverage containers of up to 3 liters must be collected separately.
The negotiated proposal maintains the global packaging reduction targets proposed in the regulation (5% by 2030, 10% by 2035 and 15% by 2040) and calls on countries to also reduce packaging waste. If finally adopted, the “Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste” will result in the ban on certain single-use plastic packaging for fresh fruit and vegetables or for food and drinks consumed in cafes or restaurants from January 1, 2030. From this date, individual portions of spices, sauces or sweeteners, as well as the miniature bottles of shampoo or cream available in many hotels, will no longer be offered. If you want your suitcase to arrive at your destination intact, you will have to look for alternatives from 2030, because then it will be forbidden at airports to wrap luggage in cellophane.
The ban also includes very light plastic bags (less than 15 microns), except for “hygienic” reasons or because they represent the “primary packaging” for bulk food products in stores, to avoid food waste, explains the European Chamber.
After a final eight-hour marathon meeting between representatives of the European Parliament and the EU Council, negotiators also agreed to ban the use of chemical compounds called perfluoro- and polyfluoroalkyls (PFAS), popularly known as “forever,” by 2026 “Contaminants” in packaging and packages that come into contact with food, such as: E.g. pizza or nugget boxes.
In general, the agreement is intended to enable the EU to achieve the set goal of reducing packaging and packaging waste by 15% by 2040, while reducing environmental pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The entire negotiation was mired in controversy due to intense lobbying by many interest groups on behalf of the packaging and fast food industries. A pressure that already last November led the European Parliament to agree to a less ambitious negotiating position than originally planned, as the final regulation contains several exceptions and deviations, although parliamentary negotiators have now welcomed the agreement. completed.
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“For the first time in an environmental law, the EU is setting targets for reducing packaging consumption, regardless of the material used,” said the European Parliament’s rapporteur, Belgian MEP Frédérique Ries (Renew). As emphasized in a statement, the interim agreement also represents a balance with the needs of the industry. “It was important that the environmental ambitions matched the industrial reality,” he noted in this context.
In fact, the regulations provide for various exceptions, for example for food containers made of wood, porcelain or wax. “I assure lovers of Camembert, Mont d'Or or Gorgonzola that the adopted text does not pose any danger to wooden packaging. “We can put this controversy behind us,” said the president of the Environment Commission, MEP Pascal Canfin, wryly, pointing to the protests in countries such as his own, France, where it was said that the regulations would undermine national icons such as the traditional wooden boat which is wrapped in the famous Camembert cheese.
The agreement also establishes a renewable five-year general exemption from meeting reuse targets under “certain conditions,” as long as states exceed certain recycling or waste reduction targets. Micro-enterprises are also exempt from the new rules, which also allow operators to form groups of up to five final distributors to meet reuse targets in the beverage sector.
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