Industry association Flexible Packaging Europe (FPE) has voiced its “strong opposition” to attempts at reopening or delaying the EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), following recent calls from parts of industry to postpone its application and review key provisions. PPWR is due to apply in all EU countries from 12 August 2026.
Following the publication of a PPWR Commission Notice and FAQs, the FPE is calling on the European Commission to urgently step up its efforts and provide the “necessary support” to the entire packaging value chain through providing clear and practical rules enabling compliance with upcoming requirements.
Suggested measures include realistic compliance pathways, agreed with national authorities, to ensure homogenous implementation for provisions such as PFAS targets; and the timely adoption of fair and workable secondary legislation on key areas such as recyclability, recycled content for plastic packaging, minimisation and market restrictions to ensure those measures can be implemented in 2030.
FPE said that providing this clarity is “essential to ensure that companies can comply in a practical, enforceable and fair manner, while continuing to innovate”. It added that reopening the regulation risks triggering fragmentation, as Member States may introduce diverging national measures if the European framework is weakened or delayed.
“The flexible packaging sector is ready to deliver on the PPWR’s objectives.” said Karri Koskela, chair of Flexible Packaging Europe, “Over the past years, converters across Europe have made significant investments to redesign packaging in line with recyclability, minimisation and recycled content requirements. It is estimated that the sector has invested more than €1 billion in the past years in research and development to meet PPWR objectives only.”
FPE added that reopening or delaying the PPWR at this stage could undermine these converter investments, as well as those by brand owners and filling equipment suppliers. It would also create regulatory uncertainty, and risk slowing down Europe’s transition to a circular economy – a harsh hit for the competitiveness of flexible packaging suppliers, said FPE.
