PPWR MEANS MAKING ALL PACKAGING REUSABLE AND RECYCLABLE.
The Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) will be a new EU regulation and aims to make packaging more sustainable and minimize the impact of packaging waste on the environment. The EU Council officially agreed to the PPWR on 4 December 2024. Once it's been published in the EU's Official Journal, the regulation will come into force. All EU countries will use it 18 months after that (in 2026). The PPWR will play a key role in how companies design their packaging in the future and take a more conscious approach to its environmental impact.
To achieve this goal, the regulation includes the following measures:
Minimum standards for the recyclability of packaging
The regulation sets minimum standards for the recyclability of packaging, requiring compliancy with two elements by 2030 and 2035 respectively:
- Design for recycling (by January 2030): Packaging must comply with the "design for recycling criteria" and be at least 70% recyclable under these conditions. Those criteria will be defined and adopted by 2028
- Recyclability at scale (by January 2035): When packaging becomes waste, it must be collected separately, sorted into specific waste streams without affecting the recyclability of other waste streams, and recycled at scale. As expected at this stage, by 1st January 2035 companies have to prove that 55 % of all sorted waste streams collected annually at Union level will be recycled in new products.
Integration of recycled materials
One of the key requirements of the regulation is the increased use of recycled materials in certain packaging, particularly plastic packaging, in order to reduce the use of virgin resources.
- From 2030, our plastic packaging must contain a minimum of 35 percent recycled PCR (Post Consumer Plastic waste) material. From 2040, the minimum proportion will be 65 percent.
- From 2030, food packaging must contain a minimum of ten percent recycled PCR material. From 2040, this minimum percentage will be increased to 50 percent.
- Exemptions for packaging whose plastic component represents less than 5% of the packaging’s total weight and certain packaging for medical contact use can be subject to other requirements.
Responsibilities in the supply chain
The regulation sets clearly defined responsibilities for companies in the supply chain to ensure that environmentally friendly practices are implemented.
Reduction of packaging and packaging waste
The PPWR sets clear targets for the reduction of packaging waste, which requires companies to take clear measures to reduce waste. For example, the weight and volume of packaging must be reduced to a minimum, so that empty space inside the carton may not exceed 50 percent.
Labeling and information standards
The regulation requires packaging to meet certain labeling standards, including the labeling of recyclable packaging and the provision of information on proper disposal.
Promotion of reusable systems
The PPWR sets out measures to promote the use of reusable packaging within the territory of the European Union to at least 40% by 2030. The aspirational target for 2040 is 70%. These include incentives for manufacturers and retailers to set up and use reusable systems. As it is today, there are exemptions for:
- Transportation of the large-scale machinery, for equipment and commodities for which packaging are customed-designed to fit the individual requirement of the ordering economic operator
- Flexible packaging in direct contact with food
- All cardboard packaging
Please note that the potential EPS ban in France scheduled for 2025 by the ‘Climate and Resilience’ act, is likely to be postponed until 2030. Presumably there will be no conflict between the EPS ban in France and PPWR.
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