the EU Parliament announced on the 4th (local time) that the European Union (EU) has tentatively agreed to ban food packaging made from perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often referred to as ‘forever chemicals’. They also agreed on new rules for sustainable packaging, including a plan to reduce packaging waste by 15% by 2040.
Under the new agreement, EU countries have banned using PFAS in food packaging. PFAS’ stable chemical structure lowers degradability and contaminability by water and oil and increases heat resistance. These characteristics make them commonly used in food packaging, frying pan coatings, textile waterproof coatings, medical equipment, cosmetics, and detergents. However, recent regulatory movements have increased due to research results showing that they are toxic, contaminate soil and water, and can cause problems such as cancer, hormonal disorders, and weakened immunity. In fact, on the 28th of last month, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decided to phase out PFAS, and in January of this year, New Zealand announced that it would ban the manufacture and import of cosmetics containing PFAS from 2026.
In addition, EU countries should not use disposable plastic packaging in fresh fruit and vegetable packaging, ketchup packets, and toiletries provided in hotels from 2030. Beverage and take-out food businesses must provide consumers with the option to bring their containers and strive to provide 10% of product packaging in reusable form by 2030. However, the EU failed to ban cardboard fast food boxes and disposable coffee cups as intended. The Financial Times (FT) reported that it was removed from the final agreement due to strong opposition from countries with developed paper industries, such as Finland and Italy.
Previously, the EU has been struggling to devise a law to reduce the enormous amount of waste caused by 80 million tons of packaging per year and to recycle all packaging by 2030. However, due to strong opposition from the industry, the reduction targets and other aspects have been somewhat relaxed. The new agreement aims to reduce packaging waste by 5% by 2030 and 15% by 2040.
Environmental groups say it’s not the best deal they had hoped for, but many consider it a significant advancement. Frederique Ries, a Member of the European Parliament from Belgium who led the legislation negotiations, called it a “historic agreement,” noting that “for the first time in environmental law, Europe has set a goal to reduce packaging.”
However, the bill is only tentatively agreed upon and requires final approval from the parliament and most member countries. Citing a parliamentary official, the FT said, “It could easily pass, but you never know what could happen during the six-week election period.”
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