Packaging, European Parliament approves new regulation

Europe has calculated that packaging is an ever-increasing source of waste. In 2018 they generated a turnover of 355 billion euros in the EU and their total increased from 66 million tonnes in 2009 to 84 million in 2021. In 2021, Europeans generated 188.7 kg of packaging waste per capita, a figure that, in the absence of new measures, is set to rise to 209 kg in 2030.

"With this regulation, the European Union has shown pragmatism and concreteness, reconciling environmental objectives with the interests of the economy. In particular, thanks to the work of the European Parliament and its rapporteurs, whom I am honoured to have led for the Industry Committee, the regulation defends and enhances the excellence of the Italian recycling industry and the supply chains of sustainable materials. At a time when the election campaign accentuates the polarisation of the debate on Europe and ideological stances, it is a good example of a concrete Europe that serves the interests of citizens," commented Patrizia Toia, MEP for the Democratic Party, Vice-President and rapporteur of the packaging regulation for the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy.

"Ours is a leading country in the 'recycling' of packaging and we, thanks to an important team effort that has placed the country system and the driving forces behind it at the centre of political action, have succeeded in obtaining reward mechanisms for countries that achieve significant results in recycling. And Italy is certainly one of these, and is therefore exempt from the reuse targets set out in Art. 26 of the Regulation, while for the restrictions in Article 22 we have managed to change the date of their entry into force, postponing it from immediately to 1 January 2030," explained Massimiliano Salini, MEP for Forza Italia - EPP.

'Another victory,' continues Massimiliano Salini, 'concerns the exemption of reuse targets for wine and spirits, which would have put our export-principled producers in serious difficulty.

'With our serious and well-founded arguments, which respect environmental sustainability targets, in a realistic and balanced way,' Massimiliano Salini concludes, 'we have shown that it is possible to think of a sustainable continent, without bringing the economic and production engine to its knees.

"Today's vote confirms that common sense has prevailed in the agreement between the Commission, Parliament and Council, recognising the commitment of virtuous states like Italy, which already has one of the most effective packaging waste management systems in Europe. Now, for the implementation of this new regulation, the role of extended producer responsibility systems will be fundamental. At European level, packaging accounts for 4% of the total waste, a small portion that is already being properly managed. We now hope that more and more materials can be efficiently incorporated into a circular and sustainable flow," added Ignazio Capuano, President of Conai.

Antonio D'Amato, ceo of Seda international Packaging Group and president of the European Paper Packaging Alliance emphasised: "A great day for Europe, and a great day above all for Italy, which has seen its arguments and commitment to the defence and development of the circular economy system prevail, of which it is now the most advanced country. Today's result in the European Parliament, with 75% of the consensus, is of enormous significance because it has prevented a U-turn from the path that the European Union has been following for over 30 years in collaboration with member states and European companies. This strategic approach has built a circular economy in which billions of Euros have been invested, ensuring economic growth together with environmental sustainability and a significant 33% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since 1990. The best way for Europe to contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is to make its technologies, know-how and best practices available to all economies in the world so that they can immediately pursue their growth objectives in full respect of environmental sustainability. The European Parliament today reaffirms the fundamental principle of technological neutrality and respect for scientific evidence that has clearly demonstrated the validity of the circular economy model'.

Appreciation from the entire Italian paper, converting and recycling supply chain, as testified by the President of the Federazione Carta Grafica Michele Bianchi: 'We are ready to make our contribution to the implementation phase of the Ppwr regulation, which will be fundamental to reconcile sustainability and internal harmonisation. With a certain regulatory framework there will be the conditions for a real transition of Europe towards an increasingly circular economy, with industrial investments aimed at developing innovative solutions and effective technologies'.

The new regulation "bans multiple types of single-use plastic packaging, and we strongly fear that it will damage an entire system of excellence in recycling, and entire production chains, because of the ideological choice to penalise recycling in favour of reuse, which entails a series of negative impacts, from logistics to safety, from increased consumption of water and energy. Decades of investment and progress in the creation of an Italian model of circular economy that has risen to international leadership, certified by the recent 72% of recycled packaging waste, have served for nothing against an unfair approach, with dubious environmental results, and which incredibly does not rest on any credible impact assessment', is the very harsh comment of Marco Bergaglio, president of Unionplast-Federazione Gomma Plastica, who stigmatises the violation of the principle of neutrality that should guide the legislation, and declares himself astonished by the numerous special rules for plastic packaging and the exceptions for packaging made of other materials.

"With the new regulations, 60-70% of the turnover of the Italian fresh food packaging sector, worth EUR 1.5 billion, is at risk. And the real risk is that in the name of the "no ifs and buts" to plastic, a chain reaction will be triggered to the detriment of sustainability: products with a shorter average shelf life, conditioned by the absence of the protection provided by packaging, with an increase in food waste and discards, and recourse to cardboard laminated with plastic or other materials, which produces more waste and more CO2 for disposal. So if the goal of Ppwr was to decrease packaging waste, the failure is concrete,' Bergaglio concludes.

While the final text voted by the Parliament validated the introduction of the principle of reciprocity also for imports from non-European countries and cancelled the obligation to re-use wine bottles and the ban on plastic pots for floriculturists, according to Cia-Agricoltori Italiani there are still penalising rules for fresh fruit and vegetables. For president Cristiano Fini, "the ban on the use of single-use plastic packaging for fruit and vegetables under 1.5 kg remains critical, as it does not support the sector either in terms of costs or the guarantee of better product preservation, as well as with respect to the objective of combating food waste. Also of concern is the wide margin of subsidiarity left to individual Member States, which risks resulting in a proliferation of heterogeneous national provisions that contradict and undermine the EU single market, creating competitiveness problems and cost increases for businesses, especially export-oriented ones. Issues on which we trust that the new Parliament, post-election, will find a fairer solution'.