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
IMCO-PA-746894
Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection · Rapporteur: Virginie Joron
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The Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee's draft opinion responds to the Commission's proposed regulation on packaging and packaging waste. It welcomes the waste-reduction ambition but asks for clarifications on consumer sorting tools, deadlines for delegated acts, an expert Forum, and lighter burdens for micro-enterprises and SMEs.¶¶¶ It changes recycled-content rules to an average over all plastic packaging placed on the market by each undertaking, and postpones restrictions on certain packaging formats to 2030 while exempting micro- and small Horeca enterprises from single-use food and drink packaging restrictions.¶¶ It seeks exemptions and later deadlines for re-use targets, based on life-cycle analysis and the waste hierarchy, and postpones the regulation's entry into force to give member states and operators more time.¶¶
Committee position. The rapporteur welcomes the proposal's ambition but shares the Regulatory Scrutiny Board's reservations and seeks clarifications on consumer protection, deadlines for delegated acts, an expert Forum, lighter burdens for micro-enterprises and SMEs, average-based recycled content, postponed format restrictions, re-use exemptions and a postponed entry into force.¶¶¶
Key points
- The rapporteur welcomes the proposal's ambition to combat waste, protect the environment and develop a circular economy, while holding consumers responsible for what they buy and how they sort packaging.¶
- She shares the reservations of the Regulatory Scrutiny Board and of most of the sector, and seeks clarifications to make objectives more realistic and encourage jobs and innovation.¶¶
- Member States should continue initiatives promoting accessible and easily understandable tools for consumers to sort and dispose of waste.¶
- Clear deadlines should be set for adopting delegated and implementing acts, such as those on recycled content, to give stakeholders legal certainty.¶
- A 'Forum on Packaging and Packaging Waste' expert group should be set up, involving member states and the whole sector in defining targets, exemptions, design criteria and recycled-content percentages.¶
- Member States should ensure labelling requirements under Article 11 do not create disproportionate administrative and economic burdens for micro-enterprises and SMEs.¶
- Minimum recycled content in plastic packaging should be calculated as an average over all plastic packaging placed on the market by each undertaking, not per unit, provided appropriate infrastructure is in place and operational.¶
- Reusable packaging production should be encouraged in the Union and purchases from third countries minimised, while keeping European operators competitive; third-country products must comply with the European framework.¶
- Labelling must respect rules for protected geographical indications and intellectual property, and the focus on QR codes and other digital data carriers is endorsed.¶
- Restrictions on certain packaging formats should be postponed until 2030, and micro- and small Horeca enterprises should be exempt from the single-use packaging restriction for food and beverages.¶
- Re-use targets should exempt certain sectors and set deadlines as late as 2030 for others, with an exemption where alternative formats deliver better environmental, economic, health and hygiene outcomes under the waste hierarchy.¶
- The entry into force of the proposal should be postponed to give member states and economic operators more time to adapt to the framework and its secondary legislation.¶
Who is affected
- Consumers, who play a key role in collecting and sorting waste and need accessible sorting tools.¶
- Micro-enterprises and SMEs, which should not face disproportionate labelling burdens.¶
- Economic operators and the packaging industry, including waste treatment, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, importers and environmental and consumer groups, to be involved in the Forum.¶
- Micro- and small-enterprises in the Horeca sector, exempted from the single-use packaging restriction for food and beverages.¶
- Member states and economic operators, given more time to adapt through postponed entry into force.¶