Plastics

| The European Parliament in plenary meeting approved in a landmark vote on 24 October 2018 a target of 35% of mandatory recycled plastic by 2025 in beverage bottles.

| The EU Single Use Plastics Directive Proposal is currently under the assessment of the European Parliament. The proposal foresees the consumption reduction of PET trays - a circular packaging product with a high amount of recycled content.

| Yesterday, October 24th, the European Parliament has adopted its negotiating position on the Commission proposal on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment.

| According to the Consumer Choice Center (CCC), Parliamentarians have now created a more restrictive strategy than the one originally suggested by the European Commission, and are about to start negotiations with the European Council.

| The European Parliament has approved the report which would make it mandatory to produce beverage containers composed of at least 35% recycled plastic by 2025.

| The European Parliament approved today its report on the draft Directive on Marine Pollution and Single-use Plastics. “European Bioplastics fully supports the transition from a linear to a circular economy. Bioplastics enable more sustainable solutions for a range of products“, says François de Bie, Chairman of European Bioplastics (EUBP).

| Single-use plastic items such as plates, cutlery, straws, balloon sticks or cotton buds, will be banned in the EU under plans adopted on Wednesday.

| The recent, swift developments of the EU Single-use plastics directive proposal are developing at a very worrying speed. The European Parliament and the Council are called to make up their minds in very short time frames, deviating from usual best practices and agreed calendars.

| Today far too much plastic waste still escapes the European collection systems. Failing to collect plastic waste leads to a loss of valuable resources and at the same time poses a risk to the natural environment.

| Technological innovation, on one hand, favours the acceleration of modern development as well as changes in various markets, while on the other, is driven by the latter two.

| The need for packaging is rising so is the danger to our environment. The packaging materials harm the environment by leaving their carbon footprints behind. Therefore, it is imperative that companies start sourcing and using sustainable packaging materials to ensure that the waste is at its minimal. If you want to incorporate ways to reduce waste, the good news is that there are quite a few strategies you can implement.

| Grocers should consider introducing more widespread deposit and return schemes instead of waiting for government action, since 88.9% of UK consumers stated that they would be likely to use a scheme as environmental concerns move higher up their agendas, says GlobalData, a data and analytics company.

| When the UK Plastics Pact launched in April, OPRL, the recycling label not-for-profit, set itself some commitments in supporting its members to deliver against their pledges. Today it reported significant progress against key commitments

| Single-use plastic items such as plates, cutlery or cotton buds, making up over 70% of marine litter, will be banned under plans backed in the Environment Committee.