Reuse a ‘big opportunity’ to tackle packaging waste, advocates say

By Valentina Romano | EURACTIV.com

09-05-2023

News Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

"In a lot of cases, I have to say, the reusable packaging system performs ecologically better," said Bettina Rechenberg from the German Environment Agency (UBA). [Elium Studio]

Languages: Deutsch

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Policymakers should not let themselves be distracted by industry-funded studies seeking to discredit reusable packaging solutions in fast food restaurants, advocates say.

The EU's draft packaging waste regulation, tabled in November last year, introduces a ban on single-use packaging for dine-in restaurants from 2030 and expands the use of reusable packaging for takeaway food consumption.

The draft is now being examined by the European Parliament and EU member states, which are considering amendments to the proposal before signing it into law.

But the proposal was met with strong pushback from the paper packaging industry, which funded a series of studies arguing that reuse targets will lead to a growth in plastic use, water consumption and CO2 emissions.

According to Jean-Pierre Schweitzer from the European Environmental Bureau, the industry studies must be taken with a pinch of salt.

In particular, he said it was important to look into who has paid for the study and if the research has been peer-reviewed or not.

"Half of them come from the food packaging sector," he remarked during a conference in the European Parliament on 26 April.

Schweitzer presented some peer-reviewed literature on the subject that shows, for instance, that reuse performs better than single-use after 15 rotations across all impacts, or that introducing reusable packaging could reduce emissions by 54%.

Besides, many environmental benefits of reusable packaging cannot be included in a lifecycle assessment, such as biodiversity, exposure to chemicals, microplastics, and land use, he continued.

"Even if we have a conclusion from a lifecycle assessment, we may not be considering all of the important factors from an environmental perspective," Schweitzer argued.

For him, reuse represents a "big opportunity" to improve the sustainability of packaging and cut waste.

The Commission's impact assessment study that was published alongside its packaging regulation has been heavily criticised by the paper industry and some policymakers for being inaccurate.

However, according to Wolfgang Trunk, policy officer at the Commission's environment directorate, many people have challenged the impact assessment because it goes "against their own business interest".

"Those industries who will lose turnover, they’re doing everything to fight this and this is often big industries, and they are very active in lobbying," he pointed out.

The current legislation failed to tackle the issue of packaging waste, but the new proposal will result in a significant decrease in waste and carbon emissions, Trunk argued.

Last April, the German Environment Agency (UBA) published six fact sheets to support the discussion on the proposed regulation, including experience from Germany's own scheme to promote reuse.

Studies in Germany showed that the amount of packaging can be reduced by 10% through a 70% share of reusable beverage packaging, a 50% share of reusable transport packaging, by scrapping pre-packaging for fruit and vegetables and by reducing oversized packaging and unnecessary additional packaging, Bettina Rechenberg from UBA explained.

"I think it's clear that reuse needs to contribute an important share to the prevention targets in correspondence to the highest level of the waste hierarchy and needs, therefore, to be promoted," she said.

"We all know that discussion about lifecycle assessments of reusable and single-use packaging and in a lot of cases, I have to say, the reusable packaging system performs ecologically better," Rechenberg added.

For this to work, however, the proposal needs to introduce a clear definition of reusable packaging, as well as an obligation for final distributors to offer reusable packaging for all beverages and food packaged at the point of sale, UBA says.

Regarding the beverage sector, the German Environment Agency's factsheets show that more ambitious reuse targets and a shorter transition period than what is envisaged in the Commission's draft legislation are possible.

Alongside this, compulsory registration in a national packaging register should be required in order to achieve more transparency, fewer free riders and fairer competition, she argued.

The register should be publicly available so that consumers can see which producers comply with Extended Producer Responsibility obligations, and fully digitalised, according to Rechenberg.

The German Environment Agency has found that in Germany, after the introduction of a Register of Producers, free-riding has been reduced from 33-40% to 25%, and a further decrease is expected.

[Edited by Frédéric Simon/Nathalie Weatherald]

Languages: Deutsch

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