The final trilogue on the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) has come to an end, with the European Council presidency and the European Parliament’s representatives reaching a provisional political agreement.
The text of the provisional agreement is not yet public, but the Council said in a statement that it ‘maintains most of the sustainability requirements for all packaging placed on the market and the headline targets proposed by the Commission’.
PFAS bans
The text introduces a restriction on placing food contact packaging containing per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs) above certain thresholds on the market. Some MEPs have been calling for the ban since earlier stages of the PPWR discussions. European leaders joined a campaign earlier this year by having their blood tested for PFAS.
As the EU is already proposing a ban on PFAS under the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation, ‘co-legislators tasked the Commission with assessing the need to amend that restriction within four years of the date of application of the regulation’ to avoid any overlap, the Council said in a statement.
The ban on PFAS was welcomed by many organisations, including Zero Waste Europe (ZWE).
“We are truly relieved to see policymakers taking action on these harmful and extremely persistent chemicals through the PPWR,” said Dorota Napierska, toxic-free circular economy policy officer at ZWE. “This means recognising the urgency of phasing out PFAS from food packaging and prioritising consumers’ health. This will hopefully also send a clear message to food packaging manufacturers that all other substances of concern that we currently find in food packaging should also be eliminated in the coming years.”
Binding re-use targets
The provisional agreement has also introduced new re-use binding targets for 2030 and indicative targets for 2040. Cardboard packaging is ‘generally exempt’ from the requirements, which otherwise vary depending on the type of packaging. Grouped packaging will be subject to the targets, as will transport and sales packaging, excluding flexible packaging in direct contact with food.
Take-away businesses have been fully exempted from binding re-use targets. They will be required to offer customers the possibility of bringing their own containers to be filled with cold or hot beverages or ready-prepared food, at no additional charge. Additionally, by 2030, take-away activities must offer 10% of products in packaging formats suitable for re-use.
The agreement also exempts member states from the binding re-use targets under certain conditions:
- If the member state exceeds by 5 percentage points the recycling targets to be achieved by 2025 and is expected to exceed by 5 percentage points the 2030 recycling targets
- If it is on track to achieve its waste prevention targets
- If the operators have adopted a corporate waste prevention and recycling plan that contribute to achieving the waste prevention and recycling objectives set out in the regulation.
Lack of ‘material-neutrality’
The plastic industry has been ramping up calls for ‘same rules for all’ and ‘material neutrality’ in the PPWR, which has had initial proposals watered down after intense lobbying from the paper industry.
The scope of restrictions on ‘unnecessary packaging’ only applies to single-use plastics and not to all single-use formats as foreseen in the original proposal. The restriction will ban plastics packaging for fruit and vegetables, food and beverages, condiments, sauces within the hospitality sector, small cosmetic and toiletry products used in the accommodation sector (e.g. shampoo or body lotion bottles), and very lightweight plastic bags.
The agreement proposes to further reduce unnecessary packaging by setting a maximum empty space ratio of 50% in grouped, transport, and e-commerce packaging. Manufacturers and importers will also be required to ensure that the weight and volume of packaging are minimised, except for protected packaging designs.
The European Environmental Bureau (EEB) was one of the first institutions to react to the new agreement, calling the exemptions for non-plastic materials ‘reckless loopholes’.
“It is especially disappointing that the scope of restrictions for unnecessary packaging are limited only to single-use plastics and not to all single-use formats as foreseen in the original proposal (including single-use paper-based packaging),” the EEB said in a statement. “It is also regrettable that cardboard packaging is excluded from the reuse targets for transport. These loopholes are the result of unprecedented pressures from single-use paper lobbies and risk undermining the regulation’s effectiveness, leading to an increase in paper packaging consumption, thus perpetuating wasteful practices and putting unsustainable pressure on forests.”
Zero Waste Europe also expressed ‘deep concern’ over some exemptions.
“It’s unsettling how the paper-based packaging lobbyists managed to get a ‘free-ride’ in the PPWR by escaping from market restrictions and some of the reuse targets at the expense of the environment and the public interest,” said Larissa Copello, packaging & reuse policy officer at ZWE. “When it comes time to implementing the PPWR, we hope it won’t lead to regrettable material substitution, and instead encourage real packaging waste reduction through well-designed reuse systems.”
The German trade association of plastic packaging (IK) said it is ‘disappointed with the short-sighted decisions’.
“The criticism is directed specifically at the special reduction targets for plastic packaging, exemptions for composite packaging from the recyclate use quotas as well as reusable quotas and bans on single-use packaging, which should only apply to plastic packaging and thus encourage a switch to other single-use packaging,” IK said in a statement.
Bioplastics and compostable plastic packaging
The provisional agreement maintains the 2030 and 2040 headline targets for minimum recycled content in plastic packaging.
Compostable plastic packaging and packaging whose plastic component represents less than 5% of the packaging’s total weight have been exempt from those targets.
The ‘state of technological development’ of bioplastics will be assessed three years after the PPWR comes into force. On that basis of that assessment, the Commission may ‘lay down sustainability requirements for bio-based content in plastic packaging’. In previous drafts, the Commission wanted to consider meeting up to 50% of the recycled content targets by using bioplastics.
European Bioplastics welcomed the policies.
“While we wait to see the details of the agreement and evaluate its impact on the biobased and compostable plastics market, we commend the legislators for acknowledging the role of compostable applications and biobased innovative packaging solutions in achieving packaging waste prevention, reaching recycling targets and their contribution towards a fully circular economy,” Roberto Ferrigno, head of EU affairs at European Bioplastics said in a statement.
Next steps
Although the PPWR negotiations have finally come to a close, the provisional agreement still hangs in the balance. The European Commission is yet to give its support for the final text. The agreement must be approved in plenary and then formally adopted by the European Parliament and Council, following revision by lawyer-linguists, before it can be published in the EU’s Official Journal and enter into force. The regulation will be applied from 18 months after the date of entry into force. The European Commission is yet to give its support for the final text.