Today, the European Parliament adopted its negotiating position on the Commission proposal for a Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste (PPWR). Flexible Packaging Europe (FPE) has welcomed the improvements on several points of the Commission’s original proposal, such as clearer deadlines for recyclability requirements and exemptions from specific reuse targets for fundamental flexible transport packaging used in direct contact with food. However, the Parliament’s PPWR text still remains challenging, with a new ban on Grade D recyclability performance grade hindering innovation and a lack of proper safeguard clauses.
Guido Aufdemkamp, Executive Director of Flexible Packaging Europe, said: “PPWR signifies a great opportunity to scale up circularity and lower the total environmental impacts of production and consumption of packaging and packaged goods by minimizing the resources used and boosting recyclability. We look forward to the next steps of the legislative process, particularly the Council General Approach, due to be adopted by the end of the year. We look forward to continuing to share our expertise with policy makers and support them in achieving an ambitious and enforceable agreement on the PPWR.”
Member States will be required to scale up efforts to separately collect packaging, but it would be only voluntary to sort waste that is not separately collected in order to capture recyclable packaging. Additionally, the Parliament has weakened a full harmonization of the PPWR, granting freedom to Member States to adopt more stringent national measures.
Flexible Packaging Europe, which represents flexible packaging suppliers across materials, accounts for more than 85% of European sales of flexible packaging made of different materials, mainly plastics, aluminium, and paper. More than half of all food products sold on the European retail markets are packed with flexible packaging.
Patrick Altenstrasser, Manager Communications at Flexible Packaging Europe, said: “This represents an important and long-awaited step forward in the legislative process which gets us closer to finalising a text that will change the future of the way we package products for decades to come.”
The European Parliament has adopted its negotiating position on the Commission proposal for a Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste (PPWR). Flexible Packaging Europe (FPE) has welcomed improvements on several points of the Commission’s original proposal, such as clearer deadlines for recyclability requirements and exemptions from specific reuse targets for fundamental flexible transport packaging used in direct contact with food.
Guido Aufdemkamp, Executive Director of Flexible Packaging Europe, said: “PPWR signifies a great opportunity to scale up circularity and lower the total environmental impacts of production and consumption of packaging and packaged goods by minimizing the resources used and boosting recyclability. We look forward to the next steps of the legislative process, particularly the Council General Approach, due to be adopted by the end of the year. We look forward to continuing to share our expertise with policy makers and support them in achieving an ambitious and enforceable agreement on the PPWR.”
Member States will be required to scale up efforts to separately collect packaging, however it will be only voluntary to sort waste that is not separately collected in order to capture recyclable packaging. Additionally, the European Parliament has weakened a full harmonization of the PPWR, granting freedom to Member States to adopt more stringent national measures.
Flexible Packaging Europe, which represents flexible packaging suppliers across materials, accounts for more than 85% of European sales of flexible packaging made of different materials, mainly plastics, aluminium, and paper. More than half of all food products sold on the European retail markets are packed with flexible packaging.
Patrick Altenstrasser, Manager Communications at Flexible Packaging Europe, said: “This represents an important and long-awaited step forward in the legislative process which gets us closer to finalising a text that will change the future of the way we package products for decades to come.”
Today, the European Parliament adopted its negotiating position on the Commission proposal for a Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste (PPWR). Flexible Packaging Europe (FPE) has welcomed the improvements on several points of the Commission’s original proposal, such as clearer deadlines for recyclability requirements and exemptions from specific reuse targets for fundamental flexible transport packaging used in direct contact with food.
Guido Aufdemkamp, Executive Director of Flexible Packaging Europe, said: “PPWR signifies a great opportunity to scale up circularity and lower the total environmental impacts of production and consumption of packaging and packaged goods by minimizing the resources used and boosting recyclability. We look forward to the next steps of the legislative process, particularly the Council General Approach, due to be adopted by the end of the year. We look forward to continuing to share our expertise with policy makers and support them in achieving
Derick is an experienced reporter having held multiple senior roles for large publishers across Europe. Specialist subjects include small business and financial emerging markets.