Packaging Act from 2024 – Labelling requirement for PET coatings?

At the end of 2022 and in spring 2023, the European Parliament received several proposals for new legal regulations relating to packaging and packaging waste. In this article, we present you with definitive and possible changes to the Packaging Act (VerpackG) from 2024 as part of these proposals. We take a look at the new labeling requirement for PET coatings, the Single-Use Plastics Fund Act from January 1, 2024, the background to the changes in the law and their impact on restaurateurs and to-go providers.

Packaging Act: Background and Objectives

On January 1, 2019, the new Packaging Act (VerpackG) replaced the Packaging Ordinance that was in force until then. EU regulations are implemented into German law through the VerpackG. The aim of the EU and the Packaging Act is primarily to reduce the negative impact of packaging on the environment. The legal regulations are intended to create financial incentives for ecologically beneficial packaging and, above all, to reduce plastic waste. The EU is aiming for very ambitious goals . Two of its goals are, for example, to make all packaging recyclable by 2030 or even to become the world's first climate-neutral continent by 2050. However, since current (food) packaging still places an immense burden on the environment, the EU is forced to enforce even more ambitious laws and more detailed regulations. Further changes to the Packaging Act are being discussed on an ongoing basis – such as the labelling requirement for PET coatings or the Single-Use Plastics Fund Act (EWKFondsG), which will come into force on January 1, 2024.

Possible changes to the Packaging Act 2024

In the course of 2024, the first further amendments to the Packaging Act could therefore be passed in addition to the Single-Use Plastics Fund Act, which will come into force on January 1, 2024. One of these amendments to the Packaging Act is an EU certification of CO2 removal . This is to be introduced beyond packaging: Innovative technologies for CO2 reduction and sustainable solutions, whether packaging solutions, in agriculture or in other areas, are to be financially supported. Certification systems are to be introduced for this purpose: Companies can have sustainable options for CO2 savings certified by EU-recognized institutions and thereby receive financial benefits. This will ultimately also apply to manufacturers of food packaging.

Possible changes to the Packaging Act, which are aimed directly at making all packaging recyclable by 2030, directly affect you as a restaurateur or take-out provider . New regulations from 2024 and in the following years are intended to ensure that reusable, biodegradable or even more recyclable packaging is financially supported. There will be mandatory recycling rates for packaging . All kinds of unnecessary packaging will also be banned in the long term. Some disposable packaging will probably even have to be biodegradable , provided that compostable alternatives can be easily obtained. There are no specific requirements for this yet. What is certain, however, is that you can expect financial benefits from using environmentally friendly take-out packaging .

Labeling requirement for PET coatings

What we can also count on with the greatest certainty: new regulations on the labeling requirement for PET coatings . According to the current proposals for changes to the Packaging Act from 2024, binding criteria for the design of packaging are to be prescribed. This also includes an obligation to label food packaging. It should be clear what materials a packaging and its coating are made of, how sustainable they are, and where packaging must be disposed of. Misleading information on sustainability will be prohibited. A categorization system will probably also be introduced, according to which packaging is categorized according to its sustainability and particularly environmentally friendly packaging will receive greater financial support.

Single-Use Plastics Fund Act from 01.01.2024

With the Single-Use Plastics Fund Act (EWKFondsG) , which comes into force on January 1, 2024, certain packaging made of single-use plastic will be subject to a levy . As a restaurateur or restaurant owner, you must therefore expect higher prices for single-use plastic packaging, as the item price for each such to-go packaging is increased by the special levy specified in the Single-Use Plastics Fund Act. The EWKFondsG implements Article 8 of the EU Single-Use Plastic Products Directive. This affects various beverage cups, food containers, and carrier bags made of non-reusable plastic. Of course, single-use packaging without any plastic content and reusable packaging are excluded from the EWKFondsG.

Laws on sustainable packaging – trends are foreseeable

In addition to the Single-Use Plastics Fund Act, which will come into force in 2024, many of the proposals mentioned are currently being examined within the EU Parliament and will probably be implemented soon. Whatever legal regulations await us in addition to the EWKFondsG and the labeling requirement for PET coatings, the trends for the future are very clear: environmentally harmful packaging is becoming more expensive. Packaging made from environmentally friendly materials is financially supported and offers more tax advantages. It is therefore definitely worth switching to sustainable packaging as quickly as possible, as the price of single-use plastic products is already increasing due to the EWKFondsG, which comes into force on January 1, 2024.

We at Better-Pack are here to help you: via our website with tips, tricks and useful information about To Go packaging or directly in personal discussions.

Our recommendation: Don't wait too long to switch to environmentally friendly packaging alternatives - further changes to the Packaging Act will come and they will increasingly contribute to the (financial) promotion of sustainable packaging!