On Tuesday, new EU provisions on packaging and packaging waste came into force. They limit, among others, the use of disposable packaging, such as single salt or sugar sachets and promote shopping trips with their own boxes. Regulations also prohibit packing in plastic bags or wrapping with foil of individual pieces of fruit and vegetables. The new rules will begin to fully apply in August 2026.
The new EU regulations have replaced the outdated packaging directive of 1994; As they adopted the form of the regulation, they will be used in the same way throughout the EU, and Member States do not have to adapt them to national law.
The regulations determine the type of packaging that can be marketed in the EU and the method of farming of packaging waste. Their purpose is to minimize the amount of packaging and waste generated.
And those – as she informed on Tuesday European Commission – A huge amount is produced in the EU. And so, in 2022, the average European produced 186.5 kg of waste, of which the top of which were packaging consisting of, worse, in 40 percent. Plastic, including plastic. Already half of the garbage found in the seas and oceans are used packaging.
No more plastic on individual vegetables and fruits
The new regulations include both packaging and waste from households, but also the commercial and industrial sectors. The regulations limit the use of some disposable plastic packaging, as individual sachets for spices, sauces and sugar are used in hotels, bars and restaurants.
Regulations also prohibit packing in plastic bags or wrapping with foil individual pieces of fruit and vegetables – packed in this way can be fruits and vegetables weighing above 1.5 kg. The regulations also assume reduces the weight and volume of packaging themselves and to avoid unnecessary packaging. It is about avoiding a situation when, for example, small products are packed in large, half empty packages.
No more vegetables in plastic packaging.tvn24
The regulations are also obliged by companies selling e.g. food or take -out drinks to allow customers to bring their own containers without incurring additional costs. In practice, this means that the customer will be able to come for take -out coffee with his own cup.
More from and for recycling
The regulations also introduce guidelines regarding the minimum content of recycling materials in packaging and the purpose of ensuring that by 2030 the packaging located on the EU market will be suitable for recycling.
And finally, the regulation minimizes the permissible content of chemicals in packaging and limits the use of those with a high content of potentially dangerous compounds, such as per- and polyphluoralkilic compounds (PFAS); These are often used in detergents.
The new regulations will become fully valid on August 12, 2026.
Source of the main photo: Facts of TVN