Mulch films represent the second largest share of plastic films used in agriculture. However, retrieval, recycling, and reuse of conventional plastics pose serious problems. Films made from soil-biodegradable plastics are specifically designed to biodegrade effectively in situ and can therefore be incorporated into the soil post-harvest. At the same time, they are proven to [...]
European Bioplastics (EUBP), the association representing the interests of around 80 member companies from the entire bioplastics value chain, welcomes the Commission’s proposal for a revised Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste (PPWR). EUBP believes that innovative materials, particularly biobased and compostable plastics, can contribute to achieving the PPWR's objectives through the adoption of [...]
Open the document The overarching problem of climate change and the future shortage of fossil resources has accelerated the search for better concepts for plastics packaging. Approaches to reuse and recycle plastics in closed loops need to be developed, while making an efficient use of resources at all times. With the corresponding demands [...]
Open the document Efficient waste management is key to the European Commission’s flagship policy of a resource efficient Europe and its vision of a circular bioeconomy. Yet, today, the waste management infrastructure still varies immensely within the EU. In the European Union Waste Framework Directive a waste hierarchy has been defined in five [...]
Open the document The Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste (PPWD) was first issued in 1994. Its main purpose was to increase the recovery rate of packaging waste and to cut disposal (landfilling). Apart from mechanical recycling also biological (organic) recycling was defined, and a specific standard for identifying "packaging recoverable by means [...]
Ecodesign for a circular economy The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation proposed by the European Commission in 2022 seeks to reduce the overall environmental impact of a wide range of products. To be effective, it should not only focus on individual products but also towards increasing collection, sorting, repair, and recirculation systems. 1,039 terawatt [...]
Intergovernmental committee discusses legally binding instrument on plastic pollution During 28 November to 2 December, the EU and its Member States participated in the first Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) meeting which took place in Punta del Este, Uruguay. The aim of the meeting is the development of an international legally binding instrument on plastic [...]
Recently, the discussion about the European Union’s future packaging and packaging waste legislation gathered momentum since a leaked version of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) became public (October 2022). The bioplastics industry is concerned by the proposal’s ignorance towards the significant role of the bioeconomy and its products, including bio-based and compostable [...]
The Product Environmental Footprint method could become the EU’s guiding approach for environmental impact assessment; to be fit for purpose, it should appraise the carbon footprint of bio-based products. As the European Commission increasingly plans to rely on the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) method as the guiding approach for environmental impact assessment, an accurate [...]
