Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste

What it is

to update the EU legislative framework for packaging and packaging waste. PROPOSED ACT: Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council. ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the European Parliament decides in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure and on an equal footing with the Council. BACKGROUND: packaging is necessary to protect and to transport goods. The manufacturing of packaging is also a major economic activity in the EU. However, regulatory approaches differ from one Member State to another, which creates obstacles that prevent the internal market for packaging from fully functioning. Such discrepancies create legal uncertainty for businesses, leading to lower investment in innovative and environment-friendly packaging and new circular business models. The Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety adopted the report by Frédérique RIES (Renew, BE) on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on packaging and packaging waste, amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and Directive (EU) 2019/904, and repealing Directive 94/62/EC. The committee responsible recommended that the European Parliament's position adopted at first reading under the ordinary legislative procedure should amend the proposal as follows: The amended text stipulated that from 1 January 2030, the plastic part in packaging placed on the market should contain the following minimum percentage of recycled content recovered from post-consumer plastic waste, per packaging format, calculated as an average per manufacturing plant, per year: - 30 % for contact sensitive packaging, except single use beverage bottles, made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) as the major component; - 7.5 % (compared to 10% proposed by the Commission) for contact sensitive packaging made from plastic materials other than PET, except single use plastic beverage bottles. Economic operators should be exempted from the obligation to meet the targets if, during a calendar year, they fall within the definition of microenterprise. Members suggested that 24 months after the adoption of the implementing acts, packaging placed on the market should be marked with a label containing information on its material composition in order to facilitate consumer sorting. The label should be exclusively based on pictograms and be easily understandable, including for persons with disabilities. This obligation does not apply to transport packaging. However, it applies to e-commerce packaging. The label may be accompanied by a QR code or other type of digital data carrier placed on the packaging that contains information on the destination of each separate component of the packaging in order to facilitate consumer sorting. As regards the establishment of the packaging forum, Members called on the Commission to ensure that there is a balanced participation of Member States’ representatives and all interested parties involved with the packaging industry, including waste treatment industry representatives, manufacturers and packaging suppliers, distributers, retailers, importers, SMEs, environmental protection groups and consumer organisations. From…

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