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In a joint press release issued on 15 February, EuPC, IK and Elipso expressed the legal opinion that the special rules for plastic packaging and the exemptions for other packaging materials discussed in the planned EU regulation (PPWR) are most likely incompatible with EU law.
According to the report, provisions that, for example, only prohibit plastic packaging by requiring its reuse, or that exclude coated paper packaging from the recycled content quotas, are likely to breach the principle of equal treatment, as there are no objective reasons for such a difference.
The legal experts consulted by the three associations also criticise procedural violations because the EU Parliament and Council have not taken all relevant factors into account in their proposals. In the joint complaint, the associations call on the Member States and the European Parliament to remove the material-specific provisions in the ongoing trialogue negotiations in order to create legal certainty and enable the necessary production planning for companies.
Plastic packaging manufacturers have long called for a return to harmonised packaging rules applicable across the EU, the communiqué said. However, the legal fragility of the text as currently proposed will most likely lead to an avalanche of European or national litigation, resulting in instability of the European framework and a weakening of the circular economy for packaging that it aims to establish. The three associations therefore ask the European legislator to guarantee the legal certainty of the text under negotiation.
The report shows, among other things, that bans on plastic film for a six-pack of bottles or plastic packaging for unprocessed fruit and vegetables are incompatible with EU law. "Bans on plastic packaging only contradict the original objectives of the PPWR and the EU's environmental principles. They would simply lead to a switch to disposable packaging made of other materials, such as paper and cardboard packaging, which are often less sustainable," criticises Gaël Bouquet, General Manager of the French plastic packaging association Elipso. Moreover, the legislator has not considered less burdensome measures.
