NEWS

The European Union has published (EU) 2025/40 on Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste and repealing 94/62/EC and its amendments

On 22 January 2025, the European Parliament and of the Council published Regulation 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste at the OJ, the following are the restrictive requirements relating to testing, raw materials, finished products, the use of labelling, as well as the timing of the entry into force and implementation of the regulation, as well as key extracts on the handling of non-compliance:

1.Harmful Substances Restrictions: Packaging must limit the total concentration of lead, cadmium, mercury, and hexavalent chromium to no more than 100 mg/kg. From August 12, 2026, food-contact packaging must not contain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in a concentration equal to or above the following limit values: 25 ppb for any PFAS as measured with targeted PFAS analysis; 250 ppb for the sum of PFAS measured as the sum of targeted PFAS analysis; or 50 ppm for total fluorine content.

2. Recyclable Requirements: All packaging must be recyclable. By 2030, packaging must meet design for recycling standards to ensure the quality of secondary raw materials is sufficient to replace primary raw materials. By 2035, packaging must achieve a certain recycling rate in large-scale recycling.

3. Minimum recycled content in plastic packaging: By 2030, all plastic packaging must contain a certain percentage of recycled plastic from post-consumer waste. Specific percentages include: 30% for PET food-contact packaging, 10% for other food-contact packaging, 30% for single-use plastic beverage bottles, and 35% for other plastic packaging. These percentages will increase by 2040.

4.Compostable Packaging: Certain packaging must meet industrial composting standards. Member States may require such packaging to be compostable when first placed on the market.

5.Packaging Minimization: By 2030, the weight and volume of packaging must be reduced to the minimum necessary to ensure its functionality. Packaging design must not be solely for increasing the perceived volume of the product.

6.Labeling Requirements: From August 12, 2028, packaging must be labeled with unified information on its material composition to facilitate consumer sorting. Labels should be based on pictograms and be easily understandable, including for people with disabilities.

7.Effective and Enforcement Dates: The regulation will take effect on August 12, 2026, with various requirements being implemented at different times. For example, PFAS restrictions in food-contact packaging will take effect on August 12, 2026, while recyclability requirements will be implemented by 20301.

8. Penalties of Violations: If economic operators fail to comply with these requirements, market surveillance authorities will require them to take appropriate corrective measures within a reasonable timeframe to ensure packaging compliance. If corrective measures are not taken within the specified timeframe, authorities will take all appropriate interim measures, including prohibiting the sale of the packaging in their territory and withdrawing or recalling it.

These provisions aim to reduce packaging waste, promote the recycling and reuse of packaging materials, and minimize negative impacts on the environment and human health.

For further details, please refer to the below link:
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2025/40/oj