On 16 January 2018, the European Commission published its Communication ‘A European Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy’, meant to be an ambitious step towards making the European plastics system more resource-efficient and to drive the change from a linear to a circular system. Bioplastics provide crucial impulses for innovation and the development of a sustainable, circular plastics economy by using alternative feedstocks and offering a wider scope of end-of-life options for plastic products. Both advantages have been generally recognised in the Commission’s Communication. However, the proposal fails to suggest concrete legislative measures to capitalise on these benefits.

European Bioplastics (EUBP) calls on the European Parliament and the European Council to expand on the Commission’s approach by introducing concrete actions in order to allow for bioplastics to unfold their full potential, thereby contributing to an evolving plastics economy.